CLEVELAND -- When Tyronn Lue inserted Tristan Thompson into his starting lineup for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Cleveland Cavaliers head coach wasn't shy to offer an explanation for his decision.
"Looking at the statistics, over the last three years of at least 30 possessions, out of all the guys that guarded Al Horford, Tristan is No. 1 in the league," Lue said. "That's a good thing to know."
It's also held true to form.
Although the Cavs would proceed to lose Game 2 107-94, they have since bounced back to even the best-of-seven series with a pair of wins in Cleveland in Games 3 and 4. A big part of those victories has been the defensive presence of Thompson, who has done his typically exceptional job guarding Horford.
After scoring 20 points in Game 1, which Thompson didn't start, the 5-time All-Star has averaged just 12.3 points in Games 2-4, never scoring more than 15 points in a single contest. The advanced tracking data is even more jarring, providing further evidence of the effect Thompson has had on Horford thus far.
According to NBA.com's Second Spectrum data, Thompson has matched up with Horford on 137 possessions through the ongoing Eastern Conference Finals, limiting the Celtics center to just 16 points on 3-of-11 shooting. In Cleveland's 111-102 Game 4 victory on Monday, Horford shot just 1-of-5 while being defended by Thompson, possessing a -6.3 points plus-minus in the process.
"He's defending him well," Lue said after Game 3. "He's physical. Al Horford's a perennial All-Star. They run a lot of sets through him, so he's usually handling the ball at the top of the key, making the dribble handoffs or making the pick-and-pops shooting the 3 or posting him.
"Tristan's the kind of guy who's agile enough to get back on his shot when he pops and put ball pressure on him at the top of the key. Just try to make him uncomfortable. Al's a good player, so he's going to score. We just want to make it tough and I think Tristan's the best matchup for us to do that."
It'd be tough to argue otherwise -- and not just based on a four-game sample size.
Dating back to Horford's time with the Atlanta Hawks, these Eastern Conference Finals mark the fourth time in as many years he's faced the Cavs in postseason play. In each series against Cleveland, Horford has been rendered less effective than his typicaly self, averaging 13.1 points and perhaps most tellingly, 4.8 rebounds per game.
In their 17 postseason games against Horford since 2015, the Cavs lay claim to a 14-3 record, including a pair of sweeps over the Hawks in 2015 and 2016 and a five-game victory over Boston in last season's Eastern Conference Finals.
With the current East Finals tied at two games apiece, the ongoing series is guaranteed to last at least two more games. Perhaps a return to Boston for Game 5 -- and potentially Game 7 -- will rejuvenate a young Celtics team largely reliant on role players.
History, however -- particularly in the Horford-Thompson matchup -- appears to be on Cleveland's side.
