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Jayson Tatum leads Celtics over Hawks in blowout win: 9 takeaways
The Celtics blew past the Hawks 123-93 on Monday, ending their road trip on a high note.
Jayson Tatum went off in the first half and the Celtics coasted the rest of the way, rolling over the Hawks 123-93 to close their road trip on a high note.
Here are the takeaways.
1. Jayson Tatum started hot
There was a stretch on Monday during which it looked like Jayson Tatum might do something special on Monday. He poured in 16 points in the first quarter and, when he returned from his brief respite at the beginning of the second quarter, he continued to cook, pouring in 10 more points before halftime to go into the break with 26.
The break, however, seemed to cool him off a bit. Tatum finished with 28 points on 10-for-21 shooting after a 1-for-8 performance in the third quarter. His only basket was a transition dunk, and he took a seat for the fourth quarter and never returned as the Celtics strolled to a 30-point win in their third road game in four nights.
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Tatum did play a crucial role as the team stretched their advantage to 18 by the end of the third quarter, dishing out several assists and acting as the focal point of the Hawks’ defense while his teammates got open looks around him.
Celtics fans hoping to see Tatum statpad to make his MVP case a little easier, however, may have been disappointed.
2. A callback to Rajon Rondo?
Apparently, Tatum and Derrick White have an agreement: When one of them says that a game is a headband night, they both have to don them.
White and Tatum were both sporting headbands on Monday, and a reporter asked Tatum about the look postgame.
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“I’m always going to be handsome,” Tatum told reporters. “I used to wear a headband a lot. But it’s a thing between me and D-White where we did it a few times last year and the year before that, and we have an agreement between the two of us. On a random day if one of us walks in, and says, ‘Yo we’ve got to wear a headband today, the other one’s got to agree.
“I made the call today, so I’ll be waiting for him to tell me the next time we’ve got to wear a headband.”
The results were pretty solid: Tatum went nuts in the first half, and White worked his way into the game, finishing with 21 points on 8-for-16 shooting to go with six rebounds and six assists.
Tatum, incidentally, wore his headband with the NBA logo upside down, which famously was outlawed to the displeasure of Rajon Rondo. Whether or not Tatum will be reprimanded remains to be seen, but even in 2010 when the rule was implemented, it felt very unnecessary.
3. High speeds
The Celtics dominated the Hawks in fast-break points, winning the category 35-4. The Hawks’ first fast-break points came in the fourth quarter when Onyeka Okongwu picked off a pass from Sam Hauser and took it the length of the floor for a slam, but until that point, the Celtics got whatever they wanted on the break with crisp, unselfish ball movement.
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Everyone pitched in. Tatum punched home a big dunk and led the break on multiple occasions. Neemias Queta was a lob threat at the rim. White and Jrue Holiday picked the Hawks apart with passing and smart cuts.
Atlanta is one of the worst defensive teams in the NBA through eight games, and Monday’s game won’t help their 28th-ranked defensive rating. For a Celtics team that feasts against opposing defenses with any weak point, the Hawks offered several and were pretty clearly outclassed from the jump.
4. Neemias Queta got his first start
With Jaylen Brown still out nursing a strained hip flexor, the Celtics went back to their jumbo lineup with Tatum, White, Holiday, Al Horford, and Neemias Queta in the opening group.
Queta was an interesting addition to the starters. He struggled a bit defensively, but he was simply bigger and more athletic than the Hawks in the middle of the paint on both ends.
Queta was pulled after a few minutes in the first quarter and was administered what a reporter called a “teaching moment” to Joe Mazzulla postgame.
“He’s just grown a lot as a player, and quite honestly, he doesn’t know how good he can be,” Mazzulla said. “He’s got a great ceiling, so the standard is very high. I thought he did some great things for us tonight, but when you’re as good as he can be, he’s just got to — we all have to hold him to that standard every single night.
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“It’s a credit to him for just allowing us to coach him, it’s a credit to the guys for supporting him, but you can see what he’s capable of when he’s at his best. He can be a real asset for us. […] He’s starting to realize how good he really can be, and he’s working at it.”
5. Jordan Walsh showed some flashes
Walsh got loose for layup in transition and scored through contact, and his defense on both ends was fun to watch. He shut down Jalen Johnson on a post-up, poked away two steals, and recorded a block in 19 minutes of action.
Offensively, Walsh still has a ways to go, but he’s settling into his defensive role nicely as an agent of chaos with a ton of energy and long, waving arms that manage to poke the ball free more often than one might expect.
6. Trae Young broke an impressive streak
Trae Young was not a factor at all for the Hawks — 1-for-10 from the field with two points and six assists, breaking a 70-game streak in which he scored at least 10 points and finished with at least five assists. Young, like many of the rotation players for both teams, did not play in the fourth quarter, which prevented him from making a last-ditch attempt to keep the streak alive.
As noted by the NBC Sports Boston broadcast, Cade Cunningham now becomes the player with the longest streak of 10 points and five assists. Cunningham’s mark? Nine.
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“He’s a great player,” Mazzulla said. “I just thought we played good team defense. We established our defense on this trip, and it takes all five guys to guard him. I thought everybody did a great job of just defending without fouling, keeping him out of transition, having high pickup points, and just guarding him as a whole team.”
7. Al Horford’s mom cooked everyone dinner.
If you need a smile, this interview between Abby Chin and Horford’s mom Arelis Reynoso help.
Horford certainly seemed to appreciate the home cooking. He was 3-for-4 with nine points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals, two blocks, and one turn-back-the-clock layup.
8. The Celtics just do this to teams now.
Presumably at some point this season, the Celtics will have a game or two that they inexplicably drop, where the energy is off and they can’t seem to find the range. That game might look a little like the Celtics from two years ago, when they could be expected to play down against bad opponents fairly regularly.
But this seems to be the new normal with the Celtics: They might not win every game against good teams (like a deeply motivated Pacers squad), especially during the regular season, but mediocre teams like the Hawks and the Hornets can generally expect to get smacked by 20-30 points.
The Celtics’ offense is punishing. Their bench offers zero relief — Payton Pritchard made just three 3-pointers (a slow night by his standard), but he responded to Atlanta’s defensive attention by simply back-cutting and driving them en route to 18 efficient points. Even the bench mob in the fourth quarter looked nightmarish for the Hawks; Walsh and Jaden Springer are defensive-minded pitbulls who recorded two steals apiece in their limited minutes.
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This was supposed to be one of the tougher parts of the Celtics’ schedule: tons of road games, no Kristaps Porzingis, and a championship hangover. Instead, the Celtics are 7-1 and rolling to huge wins.
Last year’s squad was one of the best NBA teams in recent memory. This year’s iteration is the same team with a year of continuity under their belts and still room to get better.
9. The Warriors are coming out to play
After a relatively quiet road trip that included their first loss and three solid-but-run-of-the-mill wins, the Celtics get some fireworks again when they return home on Wednesday: They face the Golden State Warriors for the first time since Steve Kerr offended the entire city of Boston by benching Tatum on the Olympic team (albeit in successful pursuit of a gold medal).
There will be boos. The game tips off at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN.
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