Jayson Tatum shines again as Celtics beat Timberwolves to open road trip: 9 takeaways
Jayson Tatum led the way for a shorthanded Celtics team as they opened a brutal road trip with a 118-115 victory over the Timberwolves.
Here are the takeaways.
The Timberwolves didn’t really have an answer for Tatum
We’ve written an opening paragraph like this more than a few times this year, but once again: The Timberwolves simply could not stop Tatum. Jaden McDaniels is no longer a match for him. Nickeil Alexander-Walker isn’t either. Rudy Gobert looked completely lost when he drew the matchup on switches.
The four-time (and reigning) Defensive Player of the Year couldn’t stop Tatum going to the basket either.
In the fourth, the Timberwolves very briefly toyed with the idea of doubling Tatum, and he immediately delivered a pair of assists that brought him closer to a triple double (he finished with 33 points, eight rebounds and nine assists, to go with three steals).
The Timberwolves looked like much more of a threat to the Celtics last year – with plenty of time remaining on the NBA schedule, of course, Minnesota is eighth in the Western Conference and hasn’t looked consistently good enough to make a run to the Finals so far.
But if the Celtics get through the Eastern Conference and find themselves facing the Timberwolves in June, Minnesota will need to have much better answers for Tatum than they did on Thursday (and, if all goes according to plan, they would also be dealing with Jaylen Brown for good measure).
Derrick White is really good too
With Brown sidelined, White took over the role of Robin to Tatum’s Batman offensively, and he – as he tends to do – performed admirably in that role. White poured in 26 points, making five of his 10 3-point attempts, and he dished out a pair of assists.
Notably, White’s defense may have been as good as his offense – he was a menace against Anthony Edwards (more on that in a minute), and he swatted away a pair of shots in the first half. He also took a pair of charges – one each on Donte DiVincenzo and Naz Reid.
NBC Sports Boston’s Abby Chin noted to Joe Mazzulla postgame that White feels he hasn’t played well recently.
“I’d agree with him,” Mazzulla said.
Mazzulla said he makes sure to “remind [White] of his greatness.”
“He has the ability to impact the game in different ways,” Mazzulla said. “I just thought he was great tonight – obviously the shot-making, but getting us into the offense, making sure the start of the second and fourth goes the way it should go, and then defensively his ability to guard different guys.”
Getting White back into his near-All-Star form would be a huge boost for a Celtics team that has scuffled lately.
Both teams absolutely hoisted 3-pointers
The TNT halftime crew on Inside the NBA may not have been fans of the Celtics’ 3-point shooting, but Joe Mazzulla’s group won’t care too much: The Celtics finished 22-for-57, which isn’t their most efficient evening (38.6 percent) but was more than enough given the volume they got up.
The Timberwolves couldn’t quite match the Celtics’ volume, but they kept themselves in the game by knocking down 21 of their 39 3-point attempts (53.8 percent).
As an aside, we would posit here that TNT’s crew of former players has gone too far in embracing their roles as basketball curmudgeons, rather than embracing what their roles could be: Ambassadors for the game who help introduce it to a younger generation.
The Celtics’ defense is on an upswing
On Tuesday, the Celtics delivered one of the more dominant defensive knockout blows of the entire NBA season against the Raptors, forcing 21 turnovers and allowing just 71 points.
The Celtics weren’t as dominant against the Timberwolves, but they did manage three things defensively that made a huge difference.
- First, their second quarter defensive performance was one of their best of the season to date. After struggling early and giving up 35 points in the first 12 minutes, the Celtics allowed just 16 in the second and more than doubled up the Timberwolves with 34 points of their own.
- Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards found himself harassed and harangued by Celtics defenders all night, most notably the aforementioned White, and he never really seemed able to get a rhythm. He finished with 15 points on 5-for-16 shooting, and after being knocked back on his heels for much of the game, he smoked a layup in the fourth quarter and bricked what turned out to be a relatively open look to tie the game in the final seconds.
- The Celtics didn’t force as many turnovers as they did against the Raptors (15 instead of 21), but they did win the turnover differential by a staggering +12 margin, turning it over just three times themselves.
All of which is to say that while the Celtics clearly have not been quite as good on the defensive end as they were last year, they have shown who they can be when they get down to business.
“We’ve had a rough stretch the last eight or nine games,” Tatum told TNT’s Allie LaForce afterward. “This January we’re trying to turn it around and get back to our identity. … The way we responded and just figured out a way to win, you’ll take that any day.”
Edwards got … very candid with the media
Edwards really, really does not like being double-teamed.
After the Celtics double-teamed him often and took the ball out of his hands, Edwards – relaxing in the locker room after the game – told reporters that he was frustrated by the ploy.”
“It’s not how I want to play, of course,” he said. “I’m only 23. I don’t want to just be passing the ball all night, you feel me?
“But the way that they are guarding me, I think I have to.”
Edwards added that he’s wired to score the ball, and he repeated that it’s “super hard” four times.
“When I get doubled and give it up and it goes to the corner, it makes it seem like I’m just like boom, the double-team won,” he said. “So I don’t know what to do, honestly. But it’s not fun, of course, because I don’t want to look like I’m not trying or not as good as I am. Because I am. But I can’t show it, because I’m getting double-teamed.”
If there’s one thing Anthony Edwards just guaranteed, it’s that every team will double him for the rest of the season.
Neemias Queta had a productive evening
Queta hasn’t always been a consistent contributor over the last few weeks, and he looks lost in some matchups, but he was excellent against the Timberwolves – eight points, five rebounds and a blocked shot, and +17 in the box score.
Maybe most importantly, Queta pulled down three offensive rebounds, attacking the glass and creating the kind of second-chance opportunities that have often mattered for the Celtics this year as they look to win the margins.
Queta was so solid, he played deep into the fourth, giving the Celtics a double-big look that helped against the Timberwolves’ size. Unfortunately for Queta, Tatum spent so much of the game punishing Minnesota’s bigs that the Wolves opted to spend significant portions of the fourth quarter going small.
Jordan Walsh continues to show flashes
At this stage in his development (especially on a team like the Celtics), the focus for Walsh is helping the team win in small doses and showing flashes of promise.
Walsh has shown flashes in a variety of ways over the last few games – an improved, repeatable 3-point stroke, impressive slashing to the rim using his absurd length. On Thursday, Walsh played just six minutes and didn’t produce much for the box score, but one of his stats was notable: This steal against Julius Randle when the Timberwolves forward tried to isolate and bully the second-year wing.
Walsh held his ground twice, absorbing contact, and then – almost casually – he stuck one of his long arms in and swiped the steal away from Randle.
These are really valuable minutes for Walsh – not just because he’s getting real playing time, but also because he’s getting minutes (and confidence) against players like Randle, a three-time All-Star who can physically overpower a lot of players in the NBA.
A young fan got a memorable souvenir from Tatum
And he never saw it coming.
Tatum has talked often about how important he believes it is to show up on the road, knowing that there are a lot of fans who only get one or two opportunities to watch him every year. Getting to see a team’s star means a lot, and that might be especially true for fans who – like the kid covered in Tatum’s sweaty towel – just so happen to be roughly the same age as Tatum’s son Deuce.
The Celtics have a brutal back-to-back
There’s no rest for the Celtics here: They will hop on a flight for a back-to-back against the Rockets on Friday night. Minneapolis to Houston, incidentally, is about 200 miles further than Boston to Chicago.
The good news for Boston: Brown sat out Thursday’s game, which might keep one of their stars fresh for a rematch against Ime Udoka and a Rockets team that has been very competitive in a tough Western Conference.
Kristaps Porzingis was also ultimately ruled out for Thursday’s game, but he told reporters that he was getting “very” close to a return. Getting Brown and Porzingis back might be enough to boost a weary team on the second night of a back-to-back.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com