But the Celtics’ other go-to is Tatum screening for Smart, or vice versa. And against a Warriors team that mostly used Curry to guard Smart in their regular-season meetings, that option could prove more appealing. Curry is
used to being targeted much more often in the playoffs than the regular season, and he should expect more of the same in this series.
He might be game enough to stop the Celtics’ pet plays. Out of 36 players who have guarded the screener on at least 100 plays this postseason, Curry ranks 18th in points allowed (0.97 points per possession), per Second Spectrum. That isn’t bad—and certainly better than Jordan Poole (1.37), who ranks last among the group.
But it’s also nowhere near the figures for Kevon Looney (0.81) or Green (0.86), who both rank in the top five.
Boston will need to pick on the Warriors’ guards because it won’t get anywhere by going after their bigs.