East Conf. Finals Game 1 - Cleveland Cavaliers 83-108 Boston Celtics - 5 Talking Points

#1 Marcus Morris exemplified all that was fine and good for the Celtics

Marcus Morris guarding LeBron in Game 1

Marcus Morris caused a stir before the game when he claimed that he was the second best defender of LeBron James behind Kawhi Leonard. The statistics hinged toward it even then, and Morris added 8 more possessions to it on this night - on the 8 possessions that LeBron was guarded by Mook, he scored 5 points on 2-of-6 shooting from the field, and he didn't have it easy.

Morris ended the night as the Celtics' second-highest scorer with 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting, in addition to going a remarkable 3-of-4 from 3-point land.

Morris' case wasn't an isolated one at all. The Celtics defended amazingly well throughout the game. Brad Stevens sent them in with a gameplan and they executed it perfectly on the court, doubling James whenever he went to the low post while running the Cavs' shooters off the 3-point line, and contesting as many shots as were humanly possible.

They soundly beat the Cavaliers with teamwork, hustle and intelligent play, and Morris' play was a microcosm of that.