The Model of Efficiency: Paul Pierce in Game 1

Posted by Brian Robb on May 18, 2010 819116 commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F2010%2F05%2F18%2Fthe-model-of-efficiency-paul-pierce-in-game-1%2FThe+Model+of+Efficiency%3A+Paul+Pierce+in+Game+12010-05-18+17%3A49%3A43Brian+Robbhttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F%3Fp%3D8191

8 Field Goal Attempts. 22 points. It’s a line that stood out to me like a sore thumb on Sunday. In fact, In the past twenty years, there have been only 6 other players in the postseason that have managed to score 22 points while taking 8 or fewer attempts from the field, that is, before Paul Pierce came through with one such outing on Sunday afternoon.

Generally, when you deliver a line like that, it usually indicates one of two things:

A) You have a terrific day shooting the ball from long range

B) You are getting to the free throw line at an impressive rate

On Sunday afternoon, it was option B for number 34. Pierce made 6 of 8 buckets on the afternoon, (2-3 from deep) but also managed to get to the free throw line 10 times on the afternoon. For C’s fans, this was a terrific sign, as Paul Pierce is at his best when he is getting to the line.

In the series against Cleveland, Pierce obviously struggled mightily on the offensive end against Lebron James and this directly related to his lack of visits to the charity stripe. Not only was Pierce having trouble getting by King James, he wasn’t getting the benefit of any calls if he managed to get to the bucket. The result? Pierce averaged just 3 free throw attempts/game against the Cavs, a far cry from when he averaged 6 a game against the Heat in Round 1.

Fast forward now to the Orlando game. Those 10 free throw attempts were easily his highest total of the playoffs. Combine that with a balanced outside game (5 of 7 outside 16 feet), as well as an vulnerable defender in Vince Carter at this stage of his career and we have the potential makings of a terrific series for The Truth.

There’s other good news though if you are Celtics fan though. Despite his scoring prowess, Pierce, like the rest of the Celtic team didn’t really have a strong offensive outing on Sunday. The Truth coughed up 5 turnovers, the highest of any game for him thus far in this postseason.

A quick look at Basketball Prospectus tells us that Boston’s offense was painfully inept for 3 of the 4 quarters on Sunday, with offensive ratings hovering around 90, to go along with poor shooting numbers and a high turnover percentage.

While the Magic blew plenty of chances as well, there is no doubt the C’s got better looks at the basket, as a whole for the majority of this contest. The C’s also blew an inordinate number of open shots, especially from close range on Sunday, shooting just 55 percent from in close, down nearly 10 percent from their season average in that region.

Now a lot of that decrease can be attributed to the presence of Superman down low, but the C’s still missed plenty of easy chances with the big fellow nowhere to be found. Combine those misses with the high percentage of turnovers and I think you can count on seeing an improved offensive performance out of both sides tonight, not just the Magic.