Nique knows how to beat Celtics
Posted: Thu May 1, 2008 5:30 pm
Hall of Famer offers 5 keys to victory in Game 6
Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins gives us the five keys to victory for the Hawks in Friday night's Game 6 of their first-round playoff series against Boston.
1. Do more of the same. Don't change your game plan from what worked in Games 3 and 4 at home. Those crowds fueled your fire in those games. Let them do it again. Play to the crowd and play with that emotion that got you rolling and really put the Celtics on their heels.
2. Protect the ball. Don't turn it over. Anytime you keep it under 12 or 13 turnovers you've had a heck of a night. And that means the ball is going through your guards and they're making good decisions. Joe Johnson and Mike Bibby have to be the guys that conduct things out there.
3. Keep them off balance. It's not so much about running set plays but just playing basketball. Playoff basketball is about guys sharing the ball, rebounding and playing defense. This is when the game gets played in its purest form. The team that executes the basics is the team that's going to come out on top.
4. Attack and run. How you do that is by moving the ball from side to side and running. They've got to run. And they've got to run with a purpose with the goal being finishing strong at the basket. That either puts you at the foul line or running up and down the floor at a pace that the Celtics don't want. Either way, you're playing to your strengths.
5. Total focus and believe. When you get back home you have to have total focus. There can't be any distractions as you prepare for that game. There's nothing to lose. So you lock in and focus on assignments and having done it twice already, you believe in each other and what you've done to get here and take care of business at home.
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