Jayson Tatum scores 41, Celtics beat Nets to claim 5th-straight win: 10 takeaways
“It just goes to show who he is,” Joe Mazzulla said of Tatum, who could have scored even more but opted to get his teammates involved.
The Celtics dominated the Nets for three quarters and held off a late surge in the fourth quarter to claim a 118-110 victory in Brooklyn on Tuesday.
Here are the takeaways.
1. Jayson Tatum started hot and rolled through the first half, scoring 31 points in the first two periods in what felt like it might be the start of one of his huge games.
Then, to start the second half, Tatum ran a pick-and-pop with Jrue Holiday and dropped a pass behind him, and Holiday buried an above-the-break 3-pointer. Over the next seven minutes, Tatum would take just two shots (and he missed both) before he scored on back-to-back possessions with a deep 3-pointer and a dunk that pushed the Celtics’ lead to 23 with 4:19 remaining in the third.
Some players might understandably have been tempted to take a 31-point half as permission to gun for a 50- or 60-point game.
“I already had my fair share of 50,” Tatum told reporters postgame. “I scored 60 before. I know I can do that. But it’s all about just playing in the rhythm. I came out second half understanding they might guard me differently, or come hit, and I was handling the ball a lot more and just trying to manipulate the defense. Guys kept setting screens, they would get behind the defense, I would throw it over the top, whether they scored or not or kicked it out for a hockey assist, I was just trying to find ways to impact the game.”
Tatum finished with 41 points, 14 rebounds and five assists. He shot 53.8/45.5/100 from the floor.
“It just goes to show who he is,” Joe Mazzulla told reporters. “He wants to win more than anything else. That’s him. That was his decision [not to go for stats]. I think that’s part of his growth as a player.”
2. At one point during his hot streak, Tatum buried a triple and said something to a fan sitting courtside. The NBC Sports Boston broadcast crew identified the fan as Russell Wilson, who was in attendance with his son.
After the game, Tatum pulled off his jersey, signed it and gave it to Wilson’s son in a nice gesture.
3. Kendrick Perkins made waves on a recent TV hit when he claimed the Celtics should post up more, arguing that the Celtics need secondary options when the 3-pointer isn’t falling.
The concept isn’t technically wrong: The Celtics score 1.17 points per possession in the post. The problem with Perkins’ argument: They are second in the league in post-up possessions per game with 8.1 possessions per game, making up 7.3 percent of their possessions. That trails only Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets (8.6 possession, 7.9 percent of their offense).
It seems unlikely that Celtics would run plays in an actual game to prove a point against a talking head on TV – even a talking head who won a ring as part of the franchise – but they did score their first three baskets on post-ups against the Nets (one each by Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Al Horford), all in the first 1:15 of game time.
“We talked about the last week or so, we definitely think we need to post more,” Mazzulla said. “I don’t think we’re posting enough.”
Another reporter followed up, asking why.
“I was joking,” Mazzulla said. “We’re second in frequency and first in efficiency.”
We leave it to the reader whether there was any hint whatsoever that Mazzulla was kidding.
4. The Celtics played Hack-a-Simmons with Ben Simmons late in the second quarter, and Simmons was removed from the game shortly after committing what looked like a pair of frustration fouls.
Simmons will always be an intriguing player, if for no other reason than the fact that his guarded nature makes it very difficult to figure out whether he is a hard-working player who can’t quite get his head right when he tries to shoot a basketball or whether he is a player so singularly good at everything else that he never had to work on his jumper and he simply doesn’t feel like doing it now. Neither option bodes well for his career going forward.
5. In an odd quirk, Tuesday’s game was the Celtics’ fifth against former Brad Stevens signee Dennis Schröder this season: They already played the Raptors four times this season, and then the Raptors dealt him to the Nets. The Celtics are guaranteed one more game against Schröder (assuming he plays) on Wednesday in Boston, and if the Nets rally claim the final play-in slot, the Celtics might actually hit double-digits.
6. Last year’s Celtics team became somewhat notorious for building big leads that melted away quickly in the second half. This year’s team still lets the lead slip sometimes, but they seem better at limiting the damage. On Tuesday, the Nets trimmed a lead that swelled as high as 23 in the third quarter to six in the fourth with 7:55 remaining, but Derrick White buried a huge 3-pointer on the next possession. Shortly afterward, the Celtics put together a 7-0 run that pushed the lead back to 14. The Nets chipped the lead back down to six again with 2:49 remaining, but (once again) White buried a huge 3-pointer that nudged the Celtics back onto the rails again.
“Mr. Reliable,” Jrue Holiday told reporters when asked about White. “Always makes the play. … Just someone you can always count on to be in the right place and not be afraid to take on that challenge of making a big shot like tonight.”
7. Holiday, incidentally, will be watching Jaylen Brown’s dunk contest closely.
“I told him if he stinks, I’m going to repost it, how embarrassed I’m going to be,” Holiday deadpanned. “But I’m excited for him. Obviously I know especially with the dunk contest, especially the big-name guys, All-Star break is a time to rest and kind of regain your mental strength. But I think to go out there and do the dunk contest is big, and again, a big name like JB who is super athletic and you see the dunks he does in games, I’m excited to see him.”
8. Our semi-regular reminder for Celtics fans to appreciate Al Horford, who scored 16 points on 6-for-6 shooting, adding six rebounds and four assists to an efficient evening. Presumably, he’ll get Wednesday off for his troubles, as Kristaps Porzingis returns.
9. The Celtics play their final game before the All-Star Break on Wednesday, tipping off against the Nets at 7:30 p.m. at TD Garden.
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