Post-Title Jayson Tatum Continues To Be One Of The Most Dominant Players In The NBA This Season

If there's one thing I love about this team it's that when they screw around and have a bad loss, you never have to worry about them responding. They take ownership in the moment, vow to be better, and then immediately back those statements up with their actions.

This is a team that never lost more than 2 games in a row last season, and only dropped back to back games 4 times in 101 games played. So far this season, they've followed each of their 3 losses with a win, with two of the three coming via blowouts on the road. It should be no surprise that after a very uncharacteristic performance against the Hawks that the Celts immediately got back to looking and playing like themselves and wouldn't you know it, they won by a billion.

To me, this is why all the fake outrage after every loss will always be funny. Aside from the fact that we just saw this team win a title, for the most part, we're seeing a carbon copy of the 2023-24 team even without their 7'3 unicorn. There are for sure things they have to tighten up, but I just can't understand the sky is falling routine that I couldn't help but see after the Hawks game when in reality, this is still very much the wagon we all watched last season

That doesn't mean they'll be perfect. It doesn't mean there aren't things they need to do better and shouldn't be criticized for when they give up 20 OREB and have 20 TOs all in the same game. But it feels like after a loss there's this rush to say 

"See! They aren't as good as last year! Championship hangover!!!"

I dunno, sometimes you just play like shit and it burns you. I think our sample size with this group is big enough to know what's the exception and what's the rule, and last night sure felt way more like the rule than the Hawks performance. 

To have those rankings in the league when 8 of your first 13 games are on the road, be 2-0 on B2Bs already with the 2nd night being on the road in both cases, that seems pretty impressive to me. 

But most importantly, it just felt nice to watch this team get back to playing at their standard. As we know, when they play to their standard, there is a Grand Canyon-sized gap between them and the rest of the league. Sorry if that offends, but it's the truth. I don't need the Celts to overachieve, I just need them to play to their normal level. Do that, and you'll have many more nights like last night.

With that said, let us begin

The Good

- We have watched NBA Champion Jayson Tatum do a lot of awesome things so far in this young season, but what we watched last night against the Nets was for my money, his most complete game of the year. MVP caliber stuff and he did it on a bum ankle

I'm not sure what they injected Tatum's ankle with before the game, but it clearly worked. We all wondered what a post-title Jayson Tatum would look like now that he had all that pressure off his shoulders and well……it's even better than I think any of us could have imagined? 

I mean think about it. Pre-title, what did we say? That the next jump for Tatum would be consistency. That the true elites of the league bring it every single night. Well….

Check. Then we said OK the point totals are cool, but the efficiency needs to be much better. He's once again shooting 37.6% from deep (this time on an insane 11.0 3PA), and his TS% of 62.8% is the highest of his career. He has better finishing around-the-rim efficiency this season than Giannis. Not only is his efficiency from the floor solid, but he's getting to the line a career-high 8.9 times a night.

Think about this for a second. We have a player here who is making 4.1 3PM a night shooting 37% on high volume, who is also getting to the FT line around 9 times a game. Do you know how insane that is? To help illustrate this, I'll give you the list of all the players in the NBA right now who are doing that. Ready?

1. Jayson Tatum

End of list.

Last night, not only was his 3 ball extremely locked in, but he also burned the Nets in the paint/at the line, all while turning it over a total of 0 times. When you lay a stinker like the Celts did against the Hawks, it's always on the best players to put the team on their back and right that wrong. Nobody on the team did that better than Tatum last night. You can always tell when Tatum is engaged by looking at his rebounding numbers, so it's no surprise to see he was at 9. I also loved how he respected the game and the Basketball Gods at the end and didn't try and force the triple double

That's what we call an ethical hooper and there will be a time down the line where this comes back around and benefits Tatum. The Basketball Gods will reward him.

- After the Hawks loss Jaylen Brown vowed to be better, especially with his turnovers. Just like Tatum, when it came time for the team's best players to show up and stop the bleeding, that's exactly what Jaylen helped do

24/12/4 with 0 TOs on 8-19 (2-5) in his 36 minutes, this is the type of response I think most people were looking for from Jaylen. Be aggressive, play smart, and be active and efficient. While Tatum did most of the heavy lifting in the 1st quarter, it was Jaylen to did the carrying in the 2nd quarter, and by the looks of things it seems like we're trending int he right direction in terms of Jaylen's shooting.

To start the year it felt like he wasn't even close, especially from three. Since coming back from injury, Jaylen is sitting at 48/37.5% giving you 25/7/3 with just 2.3 TOs a night. That's pretty much exactly where he needs to be living, and the only complaint I have is his FT shooting has dipped a little bit over these last 3 games (68%). 

But it should be no surprise that once both Jays got back to their level that the team once again looked unbeatable, and I do think there's something to be said about the best players holding themselves accountable for their failures and then immediately responding. That's honestly what I love most about both guys. They never run from their failures. They take that shit on the chin, vow to be better and then their actions speak louder than their words.

For Jaylen, that means ball security and using his strength and athleticism to thrive in the paint. Given he had 0 TOs and this was his shot chart from this game, I'd say he nailed both tasks

Defensively, I liked how Jaylen took the Cam Thomas assignment as he wasn't much of a factor this time around compared to the last time they played, and that's where the value of Jaylen really shines. He's giving you 25 on one end and then putting the best offensive player on the other team in jail on the other. Two way wings are important, and no team has a better collection than the Celts. 

- I'm only slightly joking when I say I can't remember Payton Pritchard ever having two bad games in a row. When he has a stinker you can pretty much bet your life on him bouncing back with a dominant performance. Against the Hawks, I'd say it classified as a stinker. The next night against the Nets? See for yourself

It sure does seem like 6MOY is going to come down to Pritchard vs Buddy Hield, and every time Pritchard steps on the floor he continues to strengthen his case. Obviously this is the best version of Pritchard we have ever seen, and it's not just the outside shooting. It's pretty much every part of his game. His defense feels better and more impactful, his drives are a billion times better both in terms of patience and production, he continues to playmaker all while never turning the ball over. 

You could make the case that he's been the 2nd or 3rd best Celtic so far this season……and he comes off the bench. Brad Stevens rejecting his trade request might go down as one of his best moves ever as the boss, and at 4/30M the value that Pritchard is giving this roster is simply ridiculous. You're getting 20M+ production for like 7M. For a 2nd apron team, that is MASSIVE.

- Look, for this team basketball is simple. Rebound, take care of the ball, and move the ball. That's it. You do those things, you will be unbeatable. 

Remember how the other day I said when the Celts shoot 50/40% with 18 3PM they should never lose? Well, last night they shot 53/47% with 22 3PM and won by 25. What was the difference? As always, the margins

Surprise! When the Celts don't have their worst performance on the glass and in terms of ball security, they win! Who could have seen that coming? Oh yeah, everyone who isn't a baby every time the Celtics lose a game. The formula works. The math works. But the thing is, it requires you to now be absolute dogshit around the margins. If you take care of the margins, Mazzulla Ball will do the rest of the heavy lifting. We have 200+ games of evidence that supports this, and last night was the latest one. 

- It felt like this was a bounce back game for everyone last night, including the backcourt. Jrue was back to doing a little bit of everything in an efficient manner

and even though Derrick White was boned with a horrific whistle that took him out of the game and out of his rhythm, he was still able to make insane Derrick White plays that shouldn't even be possible yet here we are

That's a guard by the way. I just wanted to make that clear.

- 35 assists and 7 TOs is enough to make a grown man cry. Four different players with at least 4, guys were finally hitting open looks off great passes (something that Tatum has been screwed on recently), and overall the product looked much more like what we're used to and much more like what it needs to be. The stagnant offense we saw against the Hawks got them into trouble, last night the ball popped, there was player movement, and water ultimately found its level in terms of their shooting production. 

The Bad

- For what feels like the 4th or 5th game in a row, the Celtics once again got off to a slow start. I really don't understand how or why this keeps happening, but I sure as shit know I don't like it.

Over their last 5 games, the Celts 1st quarter offense ranks 18th in the NBA. Their defense ranks 19th and their net rating is 19th. That is objectively bad. I know it seems like a small sample. but 5 games is nearly half of their season so far. Too often we're seeing these 16-2 or 14-5 starts, and living like that is not sustainable. I believe they started this game missing their first 6 or 7 shots while providing no real resistance defensively, which is how you find yourself down double digits (13) early.

The 34 points they allowed in the first quarter was the highest of any frame in this game, and honestly the defense wasn't all that good considering the Nets finished with 114 points on 50/44% with 19 3PM and only 12 TOs. 

If there's one gripe of the early season, it's probably the defensive end. Part of that gets solved by KP, but also that can't be used as a crutch. We saw this team play elite defense for 48 minutes without KP all last year, and as of now while 8th in the league is OK, for this team that's an underachievement. I imagine things will tighten up as the year goes on, but the rim protection and the perimeter defense needs to be better.

- Every single night it's some bullshit with the officials. Last night, it was that Derrick White play being called a foul initially before Joe had to challenge it. To no surprise, it was a Year 1 ref who repeatedly boned Derrick White all night. 

Meanwhile, on the other end, the Nets were allowed to foul the Jays pretty much every single time they touched the ball or put the ball on the floor. All I am asking for is consistency. If you are going to let players be physical, then let the Celtics be physical. Why is this so hard for officials? Cam Thomas gets slightly bumped on a runner in the paint it was a foul. Jaylen Brown gets the same contact on his runners in the paint, and it's a no call. Make it make sense.

- I continue to be extremely worried about the Celts bigs in space. Just way too slow/flat footed. Queta getting cooked on the perimeter, Luke for all he does can't really stay in front, Al is 38, it's an issue. 

How many times did we see Schroder just blow past a big on a switch and finish at the rim? How many times did we see Steph do it? The Celts kept trying to pre-switch, but ultimately this is how I fear most teams are going to attack the Celts defense. Get one of their centers on your guard and simply go north/south to the rim. To be honest I don't know how they solve that issue because their roster is their roster. 

- 17-24 from the FT line (70%), stinks. Tatum missing another technical FT is so bizarre that I'm at the point where it's time to let Derrick/Pritchard take them if they are on the floor when it happens. It has to be a mental thing for Tatum at this point. Then you had Jaylen missing another 3 in this game, which will always be annoying.

The Ugly

- What do you really have to complain about in a game that the Celtics led by 30 and won by 25? They weren't perfect but this wasn't exactly a situation like the Hawks game where this section was filled with disgusting basketball. I guess maybe that Jordan Walsh only got 1:44 of run? Maybe Joe could have lightened up the rotations given that it was a B2B and the score was well in hand in the 4th? 

Maybe it's letting Ziaire Williams have the best night of his career? I guess it's annoying how every time the Celtics play they seem to allow someone to have a career night. I'd like it if that stopped if we're being honest. 

But hey, at the end of the day we all wanted to see the Celtics respond to their worst loss of the season, and I'd say them putting up their highest point total of the season while getting great performances up and down the roster is the very definition of responding. Now it's about building upon this win and continuing the pace that we've seen for the last 2 years. They do that, things will be just fine.