The doomers were ready to pounce.
The Celts return 3-1, all while still kind of shooting the ball like assholes.
Those, are good things!
That’s what has made all this manufactured doom and gloom recently so funny.
They are 27-10 with a +10.2 point differential!
Even while not playing to their standard, they are still having a historic season.
Weird how that seems to get ignored, but oh well.
Maybe that happens in their final matchup, but we’ll just have to wait and see.
In the meantime, let’s dive in.
That itself is a gigantic win.
And those people would be children.
It’s a good matchup for him offensively even with Jokic on the floor.
The difference of course comes defensively.
All things you want to see now that KP is healthy and back in the mix.
Only taking 3 in a game like this isn’t the way.
I know he can post up and abuse mismatches.
I want him to get the shooting reps in now.
Also, is it weird I’ve never been so happy that someone was kicked in the dick?
That felt weird in the moment, but it’s the truth.
We saw something similar like after the Game 2 MIA loss from him.
Not really, just 11-23 (1-9) with some forced contested 3PA.
But make no mistake, Tatum had complete control of this game.
A perfect 2-2 and +10 in the fourth quarter, his 7 points matched any Nugget.
That’s just a fact of how their roster is constructed.
He’s too big, too strong, too good of a rim finisher.
He finished at 29.7, KP at 28.0.
You see, it is possible for the Celtics to win games playing Mazzulla Ball!
That does not mean Tatum never gets to cook late, we just saw it!
As with most things in life, it has to be a balance!
One day this will break through to people.
Once it became clear that we were also getting a Payton Pritchard stinker, that became even more important.
That, is all I’m looking for.
Play elite defense, take care of the ball, and make your open 3s.
We even avoided any prolonged CTE stretch of play, which was also nice to see.
It’s not flashy, it’s not loud, it’s just so damn solid.
That’s how I would describe a healthy and rested Jrue Holiday.
The Celts took only 35 3PA in this game.
But yes, they are the ones who play the worst version of basketball on the planet.
My gut says it’s a combination of both, which is something to monitor.
KP/Al making their open C&S 3s is something that’s sneaky non-negotiable given the Celtics system.
That has to be a shot made at a 38-40% clip for things to work.
A 2-21 stretch where nothing is close is a big reason why things felt off.
I definitely need to see an improvement in terms of how he’s guarding, but’s Al.
We know he can defend at a high level when he needs to, so it’s fine.
- I’d say the same thing about Sam Hauser.
We saw what that looked like against OKC, it was a huge reason why they lost that game.
Well, the 8 AST and 8 REB fit that bill to me.
- Finally, we saw this team play some goddamn defense in the 4th quarter.
Are things a billion times easier when you don’t have to deal with Jokic?
But when the game called for defensive execution, the Celts met the challenge.
The Bad
- Not the best non-Tatum minutes we’ve ever seen in the 2nd quarter.
All I want is for things to just be normal.
The defense has been good!
The ball movement has been awesome!
But you have to make your open jump shots.
What we saw in this game is no different from OKC.
Then, once they shoot league average, they go back up double digits.
The Celtics missing wide open looks is a THEM problem, that’s it.
They look beatable when they shoot 20%.
They aren’t going to shoot 20% 4 out of 7 times.
I hope this helps.
- Payton Pritchard is too important to this offense to have this punch in of lack of production.
That might be one of the biggest concerns coming out of this trip.
He has to find a way to be playable against these elite physical defenses.
If you’re concerned about bench production, I don’t blame you.
We know it can work, but when it’s in a rut, things look tough.
Maybe it’s just a shooting slump, but the point remains the same.
The Ugly
- In a close game in the 4th quarter, decision making and ball security is paramount.
That is especially true if you’re trying to win on the road.
So, careless plays like this are unacceptable
This is the definition of trying to do too much.
Forcing things and being reckless with the ball in high leverage moments.
This is unacceptable for any player on the roster let alone your second best player.
Can’t have it.
That is how you get into trouble and lose games you shouldn’t.
Had this happened with Jokic on the floor?
It wouldn’t shock me if they got over the hump in that quarter.
THAT’s why it matters.
