Stevens has made use of his four guards — Isaiah Thomas, Avery Bradley, Evan Turner and Marcus Smart — and plays them in interesting combinations. He’ll sometimes use three of them on the court at once.
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While you shouldn’t count the Celtics out, it’s important to note just how strong the Cavaliers are. The Cavs have 34 wins in their final 43 games, an impressive streak to take into the playoffs.
Schedule/TV (All times Eastern)
Game 1 — Sun. April 19, Boston at Cleveland, 3 p.m., ABC Game 2 — Tue. April 21, Boston at Cleveland, 7 p.m., TNT Game 3 — Thu. April 23, Cleveland at Boston, 7 p.m., TNT Game 4 — Sun. April 26, Cleveland at Boston, 1 p.m., ABC Game 5* — Tue. April 28, Boston at Cleveland, TBD Game 6* — Thu. April 30, Cleveland at Boston, TBD Game 7* — Sat. May 2, Boston at Cleveland , TNT
- If necessary
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Season series: 2-2.
Key players: The Cavaliers have a star-studded lineup featuring LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love. James is third in the NBA in scoring, averaging 25.3 points per game. Irving isn’t too far behind as he’s ninth with 21.7 points. James is also seventh in the NBA in assists per game, averaging 7.4.
The Cavs’ talent doesn’t just stop with those three players. J.R. Smith and Timofey Mozgov have made solid contributions since joining the team midway through the season.
If you look at the Celtics you’re not going to find a superstar player. They play unselfish basketball and like to spread the wealth around.
Injuries: Avery Bradley (quad), Jae Crowder (ankle) and Kelly Olynyk (head) are all questionable for Game 1 at Cleveland. Bradley suffered the injury earlier in the week and sat out the team’s final game Wednesday, along with Crowder. Olynyk was injured in Wednesday’s game and needed five stitches in the back of his head.
The Cavaliers are feeling healthy as the only player on the injury report is Anderson Varejao, who has sat out almost the entire season with an Achilles injury.
Prediction: Cavaliers in 6.
