Three tweaks to watch for in Game 3 of Celtics-Pacers

After grinding their way to two wins with their defense at TD Garden, the task gets much tougher in Indianapolis on Friday night for the Celtics against a Pacers team that had one of the best home-court advantages in the Eastern Conference (29-12) this regular season. A closer look at how Brad Stevens will prepare this group to try to put the series out of reach with a win in Game 3.

1. The Celtics punishing the Pacers switching on defense: One of the biggest strategic shifts Indiana has made this series has been switching defenders far more often than the regular season. Indiana's bigs have held up fairly well in these switches, particularly with bigs like Domantas Sabonis containing the likes of Gordon Hayward and Jayson Tatum at an acceptable level in isolation spots during the first two games. When smaller defenders have been stuck on Al Horford in the post, Indiana has been aggressive with their double teams as well, which has limited the Celtics offense from getting into a rhythm.

The onus will be on Boston to make the Pacers pay for this type of defense in Game 3. One tweak I would expect would be playing smaller far more often to help unlock Boston's offense, particularly when Turner and Young are playing together. Both of those guys have been invisible on the offensive glass (a previous concern when the C's go small) and forcing Turner out of the paint by having him guard an above-average 3-point shooter at all times could open things up for the Celtics' offense. Young trying to guard Hayward or Tatum individually is a big mismatch as well when one of those two are playing power forward. The Celtics will need a keep a true big on Sabonis when he's out there to take him off the offensive glass but just like we saw in the closing moments of Game 2, I would expect to see Stevens get more offensive-minded with his lineup choices in Game 3. Running more pick-and-roll with Tatum and Hayward as screeners to invite the double team on Irving and give some daylight to playmakers in Tatum and Hayward should help unlock easier consistent looks for the Celtics offense.

2. Getting aggressive with 3-point defense on the road: The only way the Pacers scored in the fourth quarter in Boston was from beyond the arc (0-of-9 from 2-point range) and they've shown a willingness to live-and-die by the 3 more in this series as a whole, taking far more per game than they did during the regular season. With four of the starters (Collison, Matthews, Bogdanovic, Turner) all shooting above 40 percent from 3-point range at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, I would expect the Celtics to be extremely aggressive in trying to ensure they run Indiana's shooters off the line in Game 3.

The Pacers will be comfortable in their home arena and will be in search of some offensive rhythm that has been hard to come by in Boston. To combat this, look for plenty of switching on screens by Boston and off of pindowns to ensure that uncontested looks from long distance are not available for Indiana. Aron Baynes will continue to get the start and concede some distance looks to Thaddeus Young, but his stint may be short if he struggles to close out well against smaller players. Staying connected is going to be essential for the starting group as they try to fend off a strong starting punch from the Pacers in what will effectively be a must-win game for them on Friday night. Making the Pacers work hard for open looks has to be the top priority on that front.

3. More time for Terry Rozier: The Pacers went to more pick-and-roll in Game 2, punishing Tatum on the ball when he was guarding Collison as bit more. If that trend continues and Brad Stevens wants to preserve Kyrie Irving from that punishment, I'd expect a healthy diet for Rozier in Game 3 for his defensive energy. He has been attacking the glass well and has managed to stay connected to the likes of Collison and Cory Joseph far better than anyone else in this series. As long as the Pacers continue to stick with one true big (Sabonis) in the middle off the bench and keep TJ Leaf sidelined, the Celtics will be better off with an additional ballhandler in Rozier to help take some pressure off Hayward while also slowing down the Pacers from getting into their set offense in the backcourt. It's a roll of a dice to the degree given Rozier's propensity to take ill-advised shots, but the upside will be greater for Boston on the defensive end when he's out there with the Pacers playing so many guards. Given the choice between heavier minutes for Morris or Rozier at this point, I'd lean Rozier.