5 things to watch for in Celtics-Magic Game 2

The Celtics took care of business against the Magic in Game 1, beating them 103-86 on Sunday, but the victory did have some hiccups at times. Nonetheless, the C's head into Game 2 with a 1-0 lead in a series they should definitely win. They did not need to rely on their stars in Game 1, as Derrick White took charge, putting up 30 points to guide the Green to the win.

Although they beat the Magic by almost 20 points, some concerns have arisen from Game 1. Namely, regarding Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the Magic's three point defense, turnovers, and more.

So, following the results of Game 1, what are the keys for the Celtics in Game 2, and what should fans watch out for?

A good place to start, and arguably the most important thing to look out for, is the performances of Tatum and Brown. Both guys had relatively quiet nights in Game 1. The two combined for just 33 points, which frankly is just not sustainable. Couple that with both of them battling injuries (Tatum a wrist and Brown a knee), and the J's could be considered a concern.

Brown played just 30 minutes in Game 1 and registered 16 points. Now, he did look better in the second half than the first, but that was more due to a very slow first (only six points) than an outstanding second. As aforementioned, he's battling a knee injury, it didn't appear to bother him in Game 1, but it could have contributed to the lower minutes played.

He also struggled from three, granted he only attempted two, but he missed both. More on the three point shot for the team as a whole later.

Tatum led the Celtics in minutes registering 40 on Sunday, yet he was only able to produce 17 points. Like Brown, he also scored just six points in the first half, so comparatively the second half for Tatum was much better. But, two things can be true, and it is also right to say he underwhelmed in Game 1. His shooting was particularly unimpressive, 36.4 percent from the floor and an abysmal 1-for-8 (12.5 percent) from three.

To add insult to injury (no pun intended), he actually suffered an injury to his wrist. Although the X-Rays came back negative - meaning nothing is fractured - it could still slightly inhibit his shooting. It was later reported by Shams Charania that an MRI revealed that Tatum had suffered a bone bruise, and his status for Game 2 is "up in the air." Tatum is listed by the team as doubtful for Game 2 due with a "right distal radius bone bruise."

So, the largest outstanding concern(s) and things to watch in Game 2 at TD is the J's. The Celtics probably won't desperately need them to beat the Magic, in fact they may even manage their minutes, but going forward their production is key.

It's been said ad nauseam in the past, but to reiterate: The Celtics live and die by the three. On Sunday, they shot the three at the acceptable rate of 43.2 percent, but that was largely due to White, Payton Pritchard, and Jrue Holiday. Outside of those players, the rest of the team only converted two triples.

One plausible answer for threes not falling is actually the Magic's perimeter defense. Orlando ended the season as the second-best defensive team in the NBA overall, with a 109.1 defensive rating, according to NBA.com. The Celtics could consider themselves lucky that White, Holiday, and Pritchard were all able to spring loose and hit from beyond the arc above 50 percent (combined, the trio shot the three at 63.6 percent efficiency).

The Magic's three point defense is a notable thing to look out for in Game 2. Also, what makes them so effective at shutting down scoring from outside is their ability to limit attempts from deep to begin with. They allowed the fewest three-point attempts in the league, with teams only averaging 31.3 per game. It showed on Sunday with the Celtics, who averaged 48.2 attempts per game in the season, only electing the deep ball 37 times - a noticeable decrease.

So, it will be interesting to see if the Magic's defense will hold to the same level in Game 2. If it does, one must wonder how the Celtics will combat the strong D: Do they change their offensive system and stray away from the three? Or will they continue to rely on it to a fault?

The points leader in the game did not compete for the winning team. Paolo Banchero was the star of the show, finishing with 36 points for the Magic. Going into the game, everybody knew that the one guy the Celtics needed to try to limit was Banchero. That's because he's the only Magic player who could actually take over a game/series. Nonetheless, he still dropped 36, which is substantially higher than his season average of 25.9 points per game.

Luckily for the Celtics, his contribution was meaningless because the Celtics still won by nearly 20, but it's not a winning philosophy to let a player go off for 30-plus points every night. There is the argument that the C's can still win by letting Banchero go off and just limiting everyone else, but on Sunday that isn't exactly what the did.

Franz Wagner also showed out in Game 1 putting up 23 points for the road team and was a big part of the Magic possessing a lead at halftime. Now granted, the C's won by quite a bit, so this could all be a moot point, but the Celtics can cut the Magic's feet out from under them if they limit primarily Banchero and also Wagner in Game 2.

Turnovers were an issue for the Magic in Game 1. They gave up 15, 13 of which were steals by the Celtics. Obviously, if the Magic want a shot at pulling off the upset in this series, they must limit turnovers going forward.

Considering the strong three-point defense that they had on Sunday and Tatum potentially being out in Game 2, Orlando could have a better chance at winning one in Boston if they can hold on to the ball. Keeping the turnovers to 10 or less would give them a better chance at staying close in games and not getting beat by double digits every night.

Although the turnovers weren't the deciding factor in Game 1 - and likely will not be the difference in Game 2 - the Magic make themselves a tougher opponent when they do not turn the ball over as regularly.

When looking at the box score, one will notice that the Celtics had 42 rebounds which was actually one more than Orlando's 41, but that doesn't quite tell the whole story. The Celtics did a good job at gathering boards in the second half, but to begin the game they had struggled.

The most notable of the struggles came in their own end. The Magic ended the game with 13 offensive rebounds. For stretches it appeared the C's could not corral the ball in their own end at all. Now listen it may be a minor detail, but the inability to gather rebounds in their own end certainly contributed to the Celtics getting outscored 30-22 in the second quarter and the comeback that ensued to end the opening half.

Going forward in Game 2 and onward, the Celtics must do a better job at limiting Magic's offensive rebounds. On the flip side, Orlando should try to continue to take advantage, when they get multiple opportunities at the basket per drive they showed they're a dangerous team.

The series is very likely in the Celtics' favor. Yet, there's still a lot of storylines to look out for in Game 2. With Tatum's and Brown's struggles to shoot, the strong three-point defense of the Magic, Banchero's skill, turnovers, and rebounds all being factors in Game 1, Game 2 could look very different if either team makes a few changes. Plus, with Tatum being doubtful for Game 2 things could get very interesting without him on the court for any period of time.

Game 2 between the Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic tips-off from TD Garden at 7 P.M. on Wednesday, April 23. Be sure to tune into 98.5 the Sports Hub for the call of the game.

Luke Graham is a digital sports content co-op for 98.5 the Sports Hub. He is currently a sophomore at Northeastern University studying communications and media studies. Read all his articles here, and follow him on X @LukeGraham05.