Stevens: Cs play to strengths, ‘not trying to replace’ Hayward vs Raps

Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens shared that the team hasn’t tried to replace Gordon Hayward vs Toronto, playing to their strengths instead.

While the Boston Celtics certainly got off to the sort of start they’d hoped to against the Toronto Raptors in Game 1 of their 2020 Eastern Conference Semifinals series against the northern neighbors, they may not find their highly-adaptable opponents so easy to defeat in Game 2.

And part of the puzzle to putting this series behind them in the win column will be how they adapt to the Raptors’ adjustments.

A puzzle that would be much easier to solve if veteran forward Gordon Hayward happened to be available.

Out for at least three more weeks with a sprained ankle and the expectation of being present for the birth of his next child, the Butler standout will have to be replaced by the Celtics as a group, a thankless task highlighted by Boston head coach Brad Stevens after the Celtics Game 1 win.

“Not one person isn’t going to do statistically what he does every night,” he began.

“We have to just do it by committee, and the Philly [76ers] series, it was Grant [who] came off the bench and had big moments, Brad [Wanamaker] came off the bench had big moments; Marcus [Smart] was his normal self. Marcus today was unbelievable on both ends and then Semi [Ojeleye] really filled that other spot well today. We need another body to throw in all these different guys because they drive it so well.

“So again, we’re not trying to replace him with one person,” he added. “We’re just going to do our best to play to our strengths.”

In Game 1, this strategy worked almost to perfection, but expect the players who do the Hayward-by-committee production to vary based on what they see as potential untapped advantages from the film Game 1 generated.

We’ll also likely see anticipatory adjustments on the Celtics’ end to shore up points of weakness that same review reveals.

With two of the best coaches in the game knocking heads and Boston down one of its most potent tools against the NBA’s defending champs, it’ll take Boston’s best to advance to the East Semifinals.

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