Final: Knicks 119, Celtics 81 - Celtics season comes to a crashing end

(2) BOSTON CELTICS vs (3) NEW YORK KNICKS

Eastern Conference Semifinals, Game 6 (Knicks lead 3-2)

Madison Square Garden, 8 p.m. - ESPN

Line: Knicks -2.5

INJURIES

BOSTON

OUT: Jayson Tatum (Achilles)

NEW YORK

QUESTIONABLE: Precious Achiuwa (ankle)

THINGS I’M LOOKING FOR

1. New York’s adjustment on Jaylen Brown: After watching Brown dice up the Knicks in Game 5, I think the smart response would be to try to bait him into doing too much. That would mean staying home on shooters instead of helping. 

The biggest issue with that is how that clashes with what the Knicks normally do. This is a tough time to change a defensive DNA, even if it seems like the right move. If they do, then the counter would be to play faster and try to trigger the muscle memory of guys who have spent all year helping on drives. That would get them confused, in between what they should and shouldn’t do, and open to mistakes. 

Brown will undoubtedly get blitzed, which means he just has to accept the double, back it out, and let his teammates play four-on-three. 

2. Kristaps Porzingis: I’ve said what I need to say on KP at this point. Figure out early if he can t ougive anything and react accordingly. Hopefully he gives them something good. 

3. Hacking Mitchell Robinson: I don’t think the six-for-six night should deter Boston. In fact, I think the Achiuwa ankle injury should push Boston to try it more. In a perfect scenario, Achiuwa will be ruled out, Karl-Anthony Towns will be in foul trouble, and Robinson will be stuck in the game bricking free throws as Boston builds a lead. If you see Torrey Craig subbing into the game, you know the plan is being put into place. 

4. Knicks attacking Luke Kornet: Kornet did a great job in help, with only one of his seven blocks in Game 5 coming against a guy he was guarding straight-up. I think the Knicks will look at the film and say avoiding Kornet was a mistake. I’m expecting them to put him in all the actions in Game 6 and attack him the whole time, daring him to repeat his performance and hoping to get him into foul trouble. 

The real shift will be getting Josh Hart out of the game when Kornet checks in and putting in a shooter that can’t be left open. The question there is who they go to, whether the Celtics care about leaving that guy open, and what it does to the Knicks on the other end. Deuce McBride could be an option, but that could cause other problems for the Knicks defensively. This might be where the real chess match happens. 

5. Pressure on the Knicks: I’m curious to see what the impact of the moment will be on the Knicks. I said the pressure was on the Knicks in Game 4 and they responded well. Now they're back home after a bad loss with a chance to close Boston out. The consensus is they’d better do it here, because they won’t get it done on the road. 

So let’s see how they react to this moment. How will they react if things start to go bad? Will they get tight and start missing shots?  

Follow along with my thoughts as the game goes on. They’ll show up below and in the comments section, so hop in and share your opinion as well.