(Picture above from Washington Wizards twitter @WashWizards)

General Game Information:

Where: Verizon Center in Washington, DC

When: Thursday, May 4 at 8 pm EST

Where to Watch: ESPN

Injuries:

Wizards: UPDATE Ian Mahinmi – game-time decision (calf)

Celtics: none

What to Watch For:

WILL BRADLEY BEAL BOUNCE BACK?

If Beal played even a decent game, the Wizards would have won Game 2 in regulation. Before you get made and say I’m just being biased, please just hear me out. In the game, Beal had 14 points on 4/15 shooting (1/9 on threes) and 6 turnovers, and the Wizards still had two chances to win the game in regulation. If he made just one of his missed shots (including his wide open, free throw line jumper right before the buzzer that he air balled), the Zards would have left TD Garden with a win. His three pointers might not start falling because he has shot a dreadful 27.5% from three on 8.6 attempts per game during the playoffs. But he has been scoring 24.5 points per game on 56.8% shooting from inside the arc during the playoffs, so it seems like the last game is just an outlier and that he will bounce back at Verizon Center.

WIZARDS’ BENCH WOES

The Wizards bench has been a whole new level of bad in the playoffs. The absence of Ian Mahinmi has not helped, but the four bench players who have been in the rotation so far (Brandon Jennings, Kelly Oubre, Bojan Bogdanovic, and Jason Smith) have been severely outplayed by both the Atlanta and Boston benches. Here are some numbers to quantify their lousy play.

Plus/Minus from 2017 playoffs (via Hoops Habit)

Oubre: -104 in 152 minutes

Jennings: -38 in 117 minutes

Bogdanovic: -35 in 157 minutes

Smith: -22 in 126 minutes

The Wiz don’t even need Streetball Brandon Jennings or Bogdanovic shooting 60% from three. They don’t even need the bench to outplay the Celtics bench. They just need to keep the game close because the Wizards starters will be able to outscore the Celtics starters and win the game if the bench can keep the game close while they are on the bench.

ATTEMPT TO SLOW DOWN ISAIAH THOMAS

Isaiah Thomas cannot be stopped. He is too good. But he can be slowed down. The Wizards did a solid job guarding him for the first three quarters. Thomas had 15 in the first quarter, and only 9 in the second and third quarters combined. But then the fourth quarter started, and IT showed everyone why his nickname is Mr. 4th Quarter. He went off for 29 points in the 4th/OT and it felt like he did not miss a shot during this stretch. He was the difference maker. He almost single-handedly brought the Celtics back from their fourth quarter deficit and helped them pull away in overtime.

If the Wizards can keep Thomas from going off in the fourth and even have him just produce at his first through third quarter rate, they will have a good chance of winning.

Prediction:

Wizards come out motivated to make this series competitive and win on their home floor, Beal’s three point shooting woes continue but he finds other ways to score, and Wall and Thomas continue their epic point guard battle. Wizards 116 – Celtics 114

I still believe this series will go to 7 games, but now I’m not sure who will win Game 7.

Follow me on twitter for more @pjhowley99

*All stats via Basketball Reference unless otherwise noted