Five adjustments to watch for as Celtics begin life without Gordon Hayward vs. 76ers

Five things to watch for as the Celtics adapt their postseason lineups without Gordon Hayward in the fold.

1. Brad Wanamaker is the new sixth man

The 30-year-old reserve guard got his only DNP-CD of the season against the Sixers back in February. Philadelphia used to pose a major problem for a guard like Wanamaker thanks to their size at multiple positions, but those concerns have faded now that Ben Simmons is out of the picture and Al Horford is routinely struggling on the offensive end.

The Celtics are going to want more ballhandlers and shooting threats on the floor with Gordon Hayward sidelined and Wanamaker is one of the few players off the bench that can check both of those boxes. He was solid in Game 1 (4 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist and a block) but only played 10 minutes simply because the Celtics don’t need much of him when they are at full strength. That changes with Hayward’s injury. He’s going to be the first man off the bench now and probably can be penciled in for 20-25 minutes per night until further notice against Philly.

He has the size to hold his own against the likes of Alec Burks or Shake Milton defensively while serving as a secondary shooter/creator with a mix of starters/bench players during his stints. He should be able to take advantage of some slower-footed Sixers defenders in the pick-and-roll and punish the Sixers when they put some of their inferior defenders (Burks, Milton, Korkmaz) on him. The expectation here is that three of Tatum/Walker/Brown/Smart/Wanamaker are on the court at all times. Wanamaker will be the lowest minutes-getter in that equation but he will be counted upon to help the Celtics offense stay afloat while the stars’ rests are staggered.

2. The Celtics will miss Gordon Hayward’s defense and rebounding more than his offense in this series

The veteran swingman struggled with his jump shot in Game 1 (missing several open looks) but his help defense was outstanding. He corralled a game-high four steals by making himself available to disrupt passing lanes and anticipating where the Sixers were going to do when double teams came. That, combined with keeping Tobias Harris toward a quiet scoring night (15 points), helps the Celtics to survive an off-shooting night in the win.

With Hayward out of the picture now, their defensive versatility takes a hit, particularly once you get deeper into the bench. Marcus Smart will be starting now and should take Josh Richardson as his defensive assignment, which would open Jayson Tatum to match up with Harris. There will be no serious drop-off defensively with the starters, but when Smart/Tatum have to rest, things could get dicey in a hurry for Boston.

Wanamaker is a respectable defender but lacks quickness and there are just a lot of unproven options down the bench after him. Romeo Langford will be called upon if the Sixers are going with a more perimeter-oriented look going forward as he’s better suited to stick with shifty shooters like Korkmaz/Richardson/Milton than Wanamaker. If the Sixers go bigger, Grant Williams or Semi Ojeleye will get the call to prevent Mike Scott and/or Al Horford from taking advantage of a size gap with postups.

The Celtics are going to need 15-20 minutes out of some combination of that Langford/G. Williams/Ojeleye trio most nights, and it’s likely going to come down to what lineups the Sixers decide on for their second unit to see who will get those minutes. The other wildcard here is Langford’s injured wrist ligaments. If he’s not able to play and be effective, Stevens might have to look even further down his bench toward Javonte Green for spot minutes if the Sixers stay small. Also, G. Williams is a candidate for minutes at center over Rob Williams now after the Timelord's struggles in Game 1.

3. Will the Sixers switch up their starting five and how do the Celtics respond?

This is a fascinating subplot that was already getting consideration by Brett Brown before Game 1. The key factor here is that Matisse Thybulle is clearly the Sixers' best defender on Tatum (holding Tatum to 2/9 FG in Game 1 when they went head-to-head). The question now with Hayward out of the lineup is whether Brown is willing to shake things up by removing Horford from the fold with the starting group to help slow down Tatum out of the gate. The decision won’t have a tremendous impact since it’s likely Thybulle will be playing 25-30 minutes either way if he continues his strong play from Game 1, but it would have a domino effect for Boston’s rotations.

Thybulle guarding Tatum right away frees up Josh Richardson to guard Kemba Walker or Jaylen Brown immediately and allows the Sixers to hide Shake Milton on Marcus Smart. Horford with the Sixers starters made some sense defensively against the C’s at full strength since it provided an extra layer of protection inside. However, after Jaylen Brown had his way with Horford in Game 1, it wouldn’t be a shock to see the Sixers find a way to avoid that matchup. Bringing Thybulle into the starting five allows them to do it, although it does put another limited offensive threat on the floor that the Celtics would be able to cheat off of with double teams on Embiid and company.

My bet is we might not see this switch right away, but it’s bound to happen at some point if the Sixers fall behind by two games in this series. If it does, the Celtics could shift as well, bringing in a wing (Ojeleye? Langford?) to hide on offense returning Smart to the sixth man role to help better balance rotations. Without Hayward in the starting five, the Celtics get smaller and the Sixers may adjust personnel accordingly to match up better. The Celtics got a lot of good open looks that they missed in Game 1, so Philly will be tempting fate by sticking with the same group.

4. Grant Williams will get the biggest minutes boost out of the wildcard bench options (Ojeleye/Langford/G. Williams/Green)

I’d expect to see all of these players get a shot at some point in this series, particularly if the players in front of them struggle or get into foul trouble. However, G. Williams has the strongest track record of being a positive net impact on the court all season in this group. He held his own guarding smaller players on the perimeter in Game 1 after the Sixers repeatedly targeted him, and he was able to use his strength down low to take advantage of Horford’s weak defensive rebounding with Embiid off the floor. With Hayward out of the mix, G. Williams could be asked to play some power forward as well as center off the bench and has the highest defensive IQ out of this bunch.

Ojeleye will also get a chance to see if his 3-point shooting can sustain the improvements he showed all season, but with no Ben Simmons in the fold his defensive strength isn’t as needed. He struggles with quicker wings and that’s what the Sixers will be playing plenty of right now. Ojeleye’s weak rebounding will also make him a danger to play when the Sixers go big. If Langford were healthy, he would provide the most of what Hayward gives from a defensive standpoint, but it remains to be seen how he functions while playing with a painful wrist injury. That development will be telling in Game 2 as the Sixers will put him to the test offensively when he’s on the court.

5. Marcus Smart needs to stick to his facilitator role despite likely being inserted into the starting five

This is arguably the biggest x-factor to the Celtics playoff hopes right now. Marcus Smart has been good in Orlando but outside of a hot shooting opener against the Bucks, his shooting has been subpar. The good news? It hasn’t impacted the Celtics offense much since his shooting attempts have been kept under control. A look at the tally over his past eight games:

7/11 vs. MIL
0/4 vs. POR
0/5 vs. MIA
2/5 vs. BKN
1/8 vs. TOR
3/10 vs. ORL
3/7 vs. MEM
0/5 vs. PHI

Overall, he’s shooting 20.4 percent from the field since the Bucks opener. That’s an ugly number but the Celtics have managed to go 6-1 in those games since he’s only averaging just over six shot attempts per game. He’s been a facilitator and defender first and the Celtics offense has been better off for it.

The equation changes a bit now with Hayward and his 13.7 shot attempts per game out of the fold. The Celtics will need Smart to shoot a bit more to help keep the Sixers defense honest, but the truth is the vast majority of those extra shot attempts should be going to Walker/Brown/Tatum instead of Smart.

He’s going to get more opportunities with the defensive focus going more on those guys but one of those stars should have a mismatch on most possessions down the floor. Smart’s job should be finding that first rather than seeking out chances for himself. Luckily for Boston fans, he has a good awareness of what the C’s need out of him.

“I think it will change a little bit more, especially with that starting group,” Smart said of his role. “There will be a lot more emphasis on Jayson, Jaylen and Kemba, I'll be the odd man out where I have to be ready to knock down shots right away, as (opposed to) coming off the bench and trying to ease into the game. In that aspect, it changes. But I still got to be the defensive pest that I am, the best defensive player in the league that I am, and continue to be there for my team.”

Smart needs to live up to these words and not try to fill Hayward’s role from a production standpoint. If he sticks with a slightly heavier offensive load, the C’s should have no problem winning this series. If not, the Celtics will be in danger of watching their former sixth man shoot them out of some games.