Pacers in Boston to tip off Eastern Conference Finals against Celtics

The Pacers improbable run through the NBA playoffs continues at TD Garden.

This deep in the NBA Playoffs, Game 1 on the road is a good game for an underdog team to steal on short rest when the other team has been resting for several days.

Vegas doesn’t appear to concur or if they do, the Pacers are heavier underdogs than I expected.

The C’s haven’t played since wrapping up their second-round series last Wednesday, but are 10-point favorites heading into Game 1. The Pacers are in good shape coming off a tough seven-game series against the Knicks and will need to maintain the toughness and physicality they played with against the Knicks to find an advantage against the talented Celtics.

Hard to argue with the betting line though considering the top heavy roster of the Celtics with talent and length to throw at the Pacers. The addition of Pascal Siakam has helped minimize that issue with Boston but it remains, even with Kristaps Porzingis ruled out for Game 1 and not expected to play in at least the first two games in Boston.

The Celtics don’t mind the pace the Pacers play with as the top two offenses in the NBA aren’t shy racing to get buckets. Still, the Pacers will want to keep Boston running to try to seek any depth advantage they can.

I’ve listened to a few Celtics-centric podcasts with insiders discussing how Boston will work around Porzingis. While there seems to be no concern, a few of those insiders proposed (I assume with some knowledge of the situation) the Celtics use ol’ friend, Oshae Brissett in the rotation for some small-ball lineups. While they also laud the Celtics’ depth, the advantage can’t be that great if Brissy is the answer.

Regardless, the Pacers are in for another educational experience that should have great long-term ramifications. They also have the opportunity for apply lessons learned in their wins over Milwaukee and New York. Game 1 in both series was a house of horrors for Tyrese Haliburton. Not enough aggression, not enough shots and seeming to be a bit over his head. We’ll see if he can improve on his impact early in the series because the Pacers certainly don’t have any margin for error in this series.

Game 1 has to have a full, gut-spilling effort for 48 minutes…and then hope the Celtics don’t make 20 three-pointers.

ECF Game 1 Details

Where: TD Garden, Boston, MA

When: Tuesday, May 21, 2024, 8:00 p.m. ET

TV: ESPN

Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan

Odds: Pacers +10

Projected Starters

Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, Myles Turner

Celtics: Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Al Horford

Injuries

Pacers: Bennedict Mathurin (shoulder) - out

Celtics: Xavier Tillman (personal) - questionable, Kristaps Porzingis (calf strain) - out