The Celtics Are Now Finding Ways To Do Things On A Basketball Court That Shouldn't Be Humanly Possible

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It pretty much requires an act of God to convince a healthy Jayson Tatum to miss a basketball game, let alone one in front of his own fans. Tatum's stubbornness in terms of always being on the floor every single night is partly what makes him who he is. More superstars should have his mindset if we're being honest, and the league would certainly be in a better place if that were the case. 

Thankfully, Brad Stevens is more powerful than God because last night he was able to get Tatum his very very very much needed rest day. It was his first missed game of the season, he basically load managed the game against the Heat despite being active, so given where the Celts are in their schedule and what is on the horizon, this game against the Pistons was the perfect spot to let your best player have the night off (as well as Jrue who also needs the rest).

It's not as if the Celts don't have the talent to survive this rare occurrence. This is why Brad Stevens built the wagon we are currently watching, because no matter who is in or out, this team is able to adjust and overcome. That's what makes them special. I mean, we're 21 games into the NBA season and the Celts have used their intended starting lineup in just 2 games for a total of 33 minutes. At 18-4, I'd say they know how to thrive regardless of who is on the floor.

But last night was something a little different. While I think most still expected the Celts to win this game (and they did), what's crazy is we saw this team do something that no Celtics team in their franchise's history had ever been able to accomplish. You don't usually have a sentence like that about a game that does not include the best player, but it's the truth

Everything about a normal game tells you this should have been a loss. When an opponent makes at least 20 3PM and shoots at least 50% from deep, the Celts as a franchise had never won that game…..until last night.

Not only did they win it, they won it by double digits.

Just think about that for a second. 

When you go out and make 20 3s on 50% shooting, that's arguably the best night of your season. For the Pistons, it was their best shooting performance of the year…..and it didn't matter. Do you understand how insane that is? What the Celts were able to do without their best player and two starters shouldn't be humanly possible, yet for them it was just another day at the office. 

I am begging you, do not take this team and what we are watching for granted. This isn't normal. This shouldn't happen. This doesn't happen. 

This win told us that this team could absorb a magnet ball game from their opponent on the chin and not even flinch. That has to be so deflating. The Pistons played great! Unfortunately for them, none of it mattered

With that said, let us begin.

The Good

- There are a few good options to kick us off in this highly coveted spot, but after going over the data and watching the film, I'm not sure it's right to begin anywhere else than our beloved 7'3 basketball demon

I am not being dramatic when I say that this man has changed my life. What else can we really even say? When the game opens with KP immediately blocking a dunk at the rim on one and and then immediately catching an easy lob on the other. the fact that there has been ZERO rust from him after coming back from injury makes no goddamn sense. 

It really cannot be overstated how much KP truly changes everything about this team on both ends of the floor. His 3 ball isn't even locked in yet and it hasn't mattered one bit. In just 29 minutes last night, KP was 2nd in points (26), 1st in rebounds (9), t-1st in blocks (2), 2nd in FTA (8), and t-1st in +/- at a +16. Defensively he has completely shut off plays at the rim which in my opinion was one of the biggest holes of the Celts early season defense, and then offensively it's a pick your poison with no good option.

If you don't guard him from 30 ft, he's shooting and probably making it. If you switch, congrats you just won a post up possession where KP is simply going to shoot over you. Need a bucket? No problem, just dump it down to KP and let him get to the FT line (KP once again has a 40% FTA rate).

The Celts are clear title contenders and favorites without KP, that much they've shown us. But with him? They become unbeatable. You're not beating this team 4 times out of 7 with a healthy KP on the floor. Sorry if that offends, it's just the reality of the situation. It's why he's the cheat code. You can even have a game where you make 20 3s, and it doesn't matter because nobody on the planet can stop this dude. 

- On a night when the best player is out, that's a game in which it's time for the other franchise player to make sure nothing changes. That's a night where the Celts needed Jaylen Brown to be at his best on both ends of the floor, to set the standard for the rest of the team, and be that guy.

Safe to say, that's exactly what happened

Ignore the clear agenda pushing rage bait at the end of that tweet and just focus on the line instead. Without a doubt, this was Jaylen's best passing performance of the season. Not just because of the assist total, but because of his approach in how he delivered them. We saw Jaylen be patient on his drives, read the defense perfectly, and make a conscious effort to get his shooters the ball in spots where they could succeed. 

He essentially filled the Jayson Tatum role perfectly in that regard. That's what has made Tatum so lethal. The ability to manipulate defenses and the game without scoring is what the best of the best are able to do, and with Tatum out that responsibility was something Jaylen had to handle. 

Aside from the playmaking, it was also on Jaylen to make sure the team got off to a good start. That meant playing smart, and it meant playing efficient. 

An 8-11 first half, this game was your classic example of why it absolutely rules to have BOTH Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown on this team. Now he wasn't perfect, his shot sort of disappeared in the second half and there were some iffy turnovers late, but overall? Jaylen gave you exactly what you needed from your franchise guy on a night Tatum was in street clothes. The same way Tatum always gives you what you need on nights Brown is out. 

It also shouldn't be overlooked what the Celts look like in the non-Tatum minutes with Jaylen on the floor. Whether that be while Tatum is out for the night or subbed out during a game, surviving those minutes are crucial. So far this season, look at what is happening in those moments

A 134 ORTG with Jaylen on and Tatum off. Another 134 ORTG when Jaylen/KP are on and Tatum is off, with MUCH better defense. To put this into perspective, last season the Celts offense was at a 119 ORTG with just Jaylen and no Tatum/KP, and a 126 ORTG with just Jaylen/KP. So the fact that the Celts are able to have an even better offense this year goes a long way in surviving the Tatum rest.

Now with KP back and the defense tightening up in those minutes, it certainly makes things easier.

- Serious question. What if the level of play we're seeing from Payton Pritchard right now is just who he has officially turned into? What about his play doesn't look sustainable to you? Oh, a career 40% shooter from 3 is shooting 40%? Oh, a guy is able to make layups? We're at the point where every single night from Pritchard looks the same, and that just so happens to be the best basketball of his entire life

You want to know what's crazy? Aside from everything Pritchard is giving you offensively, he's also off to one hell of a start defensively as well. For whatever reason opposing players think you can attack Pritchard. Yeah, he's short. So what? Keep trying him and you'll just be the latest entrant to hell

It was fitting that on a night when he couldn't really buy a bucket that Pritchard was the one who delivered all the big daggers late because of course it was. That's what Payton Pritchard does. I can only imagine what it feels like to think you've done a good job limiting his production, and then you look down and he suddenly has another 19 points off the bench with 5 3PM, two of which basically ended the game. 

We all saw the progression that Derrick White made, especially playing under Joe. Is it crazy to think that maybe we're seeing something similar here with Pritchard? I mean, nobody loves Payton more than Joe Mazzulla, and now that he's fully empowered, look at the results!

This is what happens when roles are clearly defined. There's a reason Joe doesn't mess with Pritchard's role off the bench even when guys sit, because once a player is comfortable in that role and thriving, you don't do a thing to mess that up.

- Make no mistake, without Mazzulla Ball, the Celts lose this game. 

The funny part is the Celts also won the points in the paint battle 44-38, but when the ball is moving like it was last night and guys are hitting their 3s like they were last night, it's too overwhelming. It's an avalanche that even if you think you're keeping pace with, you're actually down 10+ points. 

For those who always find themselves crying about the 3P volume, welcome to 2024. You have to do it, especially when your opponent is making 20+ 3PM themselves. The point isn't about the total number, but how they are generated. 30 AST on 45 FGM is a fantastic number, and in return it gave us your standard Mazzulla Ball outcome.

- Boy is it nice to see Sam Hauser get back to looking like Sam Hauser again. I'm not sure if his early struggles were just tied to his back issues or maybe it was just some shit luck, but the dude couldn't make an open 3PA to save his life and frankly, it was sneaky a bit of an issue. It may not be fair, but Hauser hitting open 3s is pretty key to how this whole thing works. 

Here's the encouraging news. Over Hauser's last 10 games, he's back to shooting 42.2% from deep on 5.9 3PA a night. If you look at his last 6 games, that number is 47.1% on 5.7 3PA. Whatever was plaguing him early in the year looks to be behind him, and when he gets on a run like last night where his 3s are coming off C&S AND off motion all while barely hitting the rim, that's how you know he's #Back. 

Much like Pritchard, we also shouldn't overlook Hauser on the defensive end either. He continues to have great positioning in terms of moving his feet and cutting off driving lanes all without fouling, and I've always considered that one fo the more underrated parts of his game and how he's secured his spot in the rotation. Sure being one of the best shooters on earth helps. but being able to guard your yard consistently is what solidifies your spot in Joe's rotation.

- Even when Derrick White is struggling with his shot (4-15, 3-11), he still finds ways to make a winning impact. What a guy, what a player

Let that be a lesson to all the kids out there. Just because you can't make a shot to save your life does not mean you can't impact winning. You'll never see a missed shot impact the effort level of Derrick White, which is yet another reason he may be the greatest role model in the history of role models. Find other ways to help your team knowing that eventually shots are going to fall.

If anything, that was a peek into the DNA of this team. That's the DNA of a champion.

- Bless Luke Kornet

- A rested Al Horford is one of life's greatest gifts. From looking spry on the defensive end to making 4 of his 6 3PA while doing a little bit of everything else, he looks primed and ready for another matchup against Giannis. He's not playing on Saturday, so I;m going to need him to empty the tank.

When Horford is making the safety valve open C&S 3PA, there's really no solve for this offense. We saw how important it was during their title run, and it was just as important last night without Tatum. His ability to stretch the defense is crucial, and that only happens if he makes his open looks like he did in this win.

The Bad

- It's hard to complain about a wire-to-wire win that had 0 ties and 0 lead changes with a lead that was as high as 20, but I can't sit here and tell you this was the best defensive performance we've ever seen from this team.

Allowing 120 points at home against the 23rd ranked offense in the NBA isn't exactly "good". Holding the Pistons to just one quarter under 30 points isn't a sustainable level of defense, and even if you want to chalk this up to a fake magnet ball game and that the Pistons will never shoot like this again, that doesn't change the fact that the perimeter defense still didn't leave more to be desired.

I know this, the effort and execution are going to have to be a whole lot better tomorrow night against MIL. 

When you look at how things have gone so far this season, a lot of the metric look pretty similar to last year, with one glaring difference

The defense has to tighten up. Shooting will come and go, but elite lockdown defense needs to get back to being the standard, not the exception. 

- I know I'm probably the only one annoyed at a 19-25 performance from the FT line, but I can't change who I am. Jaylen missed 4 which was tough coming off a 9-10 performance in the last game, but even Derrick White missed one and he never misses. I will say I do like the 25 FTA number all without Tatum, but then again he never gets a call anyway so I'm not sure how much changes even if he plays.

- At this point, Jordan Walsh is mostly a cardio player. That's fine I guess, but I'd like him to not worry so much about making a mistake and just go out and play. You can tell he doesn't want to mess up and as a result he becomes hesitant, which cannot happen. Passing up open 3s, not really doing anything with the ball other than immediately pass it back to whoever gave it to him, he's playing like a freshman on varsity who doesn't want to screw anything up.

Mistakes are OK. They happen to everyone. But at some point he has to do something tangible with the minutes he gets.

- A pretty tough 2-16 (0-7) showing from Brown/White in the second half, especially in the 4th which is sneaky what allowed the Pistons to make one last run. It didn't matter what either guy threw up whether it was an open 3PA or a floater, nothing was dropping over those final 24 minutes. 

Thankfully, everyone else was there to pick up the slack, but that was very strange to watch. I can't remember a time Derrick was that cold with everything he threw up, but whatever!

The Ugly

- Listen I don't want to be mean, but Xavier Tillman is showing to be unplayable right now. I don't know how else to say it. Slow defensively, getting cooked in space regularly, and then offensively you pretty much can't pass him the ball.

This whole passing up open 3s just so he can put the ball on the floor and then get stuck under the rim which eventually leads to a turnover is not going to cut it. I don't care if Tillman misses every 3 he takes, he simply HAS TO take the open ones. The Celts will get the OREB, don't even worry about that. But Mazzulla Ball demands you shoot the ball when you're open, and if you aren't willing to do that, then you can't be on the floor. 

I'd say the same thing for Walsh as well. You have to pull the trigger when you get a clean look because you have to make the defense respect the "idea" that you're a three point threat. If they know you're never going to shoot it, they will adjust their defense accordingly and it makes things complicated for everyone else. 

But hey, 18-4 is 18-4. We're now at the stage where the Celts are finding ways to win games that historically, no team should be able to win. We as fans have truly never seen anything like this team, and the fun part is they can play even better than what we're currently watching. LFG.