There May Not Be A More Terrifying Basketball Team On The Planet Than A Rested Boston Celtics

Finally, after what felt like forever, the NBA Champion Boston Celtics finally returned to the floor last night. How did everyone enjoy the break? While I understand how important and valuable the rest was, it was arguably one of the worst weeks of my life. Watching all these other teams and their quality of basketball made me miss the best basketball team on the planet. They really are just playing a different sport and in some ways, it's kind of ruined things for me. Sure there are fun moments and games, but I'm willing to admit that I've become spoiled. Once you get that taste of Mazzulla Ball and you lift a Larry, nothing else really hits the same.

For the second time in about a week, the Celts were tasked with playing the Pistons without Jayson Tatum. The fact that they can win like this while also getting their best player even more rest is pretty insane, and something I also think we should all be thankful for. If the goal is being healthy by the Spring, then finding these pockets in the schedule to get your most important player all the rest he needs and then some, is important. Plus, it's not like the Celts haven't made it clear that when it comes to this matchup, they're just fine

12 wins in a row and 13 of the last 14 with that one loss coming by single point. Not bad! And while nobody is cueing the duckboats because the Celts once again beat the Pistons, this isn't really about them. This is about the champs getting back to their winning ways after dropping a winnable game against the Grizzlies and stacking as many Ws as possible during a softer part of their schedule (WSH/CHI/CHI/ORL up next).

With that said, let's dive into win #20.

The Good

- Jaylen Brown said it best all the way back in October at Media Day. 

At the time, many said he was taking a low blow at the Pistons and they caught an unnecessary stray. I tend to believe it was none of that, it was Jaylen simply telling the truth. 

Why do I say that? Well….

So I'll ask you. Where was Jaylen wrong? He told everyone in October what the Celts do in these types of games, and then a few months later here we are, watching Payton Pritchard do exactly what Jaylen said. Had Sam Hauser played, he absolutely takes 10 3PA in this game as well.

When it comes to Pritchard, what more can we say? We are witnessing something special. I'm not sure what that is yet exactly, but I know it's something. Isaiah 2.0? An All Star off the bench? The best basketball player on the planet? It's all on the table. All I know is I'm at the point where whenever Pritchard steps on the court, I now fully expect him to put up an efficient 20+ and completely take games over. I mean, can you blame me? Look at what this man is doing!

While the shooting will always be what most people focus on, for those of us who have been watching Payton since his first game, that isn't really a surprise. Yeah, the lifetime 40% three point shooter has insane range. It's no surprise that only Payton Pritchard and Ray Allen are the only Celtics in franchise history to make at least 500 3PM and shoot at least 40%. It's what they do.

So for me, the excitement around Pritchard is more around the development of his all around game. What we are watching now is a complete player, on both ends of the floor. This version of Payton is a guy who not only has the greenest of green lights, but also understands how to manipulate defenses and make an impact without scoring. Out of all his plays last night, I still can't stop thinking about this one in particular

Everything about this one play is an example of Pritchard's growth. The patience he shows on his drive with his eyes up the whole time, and the way he was able to draw both defenders while Luke rolled to the rim was something that he never really showed early in his career. That probably would have been a hard drive to the basket through traffic, and then Pritchard would have picked up his dribble and the possession would have been a disaster. Instead, he baits the defenders perfectly and knows the whole time where Kornet is, even though he can barely see through the defenders

Then you add in the PERFECT lob to finish it off, and I can't think of a better example of Pritchard's growth as a point guard. He's not just an off ball shooter off the bench. He can legitimately run the offense and create for others WHILE burying you from 35ft if he chooses. Keep in mind, he's also never going to turn the ball over (10:1 ratio last night). The more I think about it, the more I struggle to find a hole in Pritchard's game. He's solved his finishing around the rim issues from previous seasons to the point where now he shoots like 73% at the rim. I trust him to run the offense either as a score first point guard or a facilitator. He may be the best offensive rebounding guard on the roster. And even with his height he still makes an impact defensively through elite ball pressure. Pritchard also plays every single night, and we're at the point where you have to legitimately cut off his foot if you want him to sit out a game.

In addition to all that, Brad got this type of production for $7M a year. It feels like cheating at this point.

Forget 6MOY, that shit's been wrapped up for weeks now. It may be time to start pushing more serious agendas, and a couple more 20 balls off the bench will force everyone to have conversations they may not be ready for.

- I'm not sure about anyone else, but boy did it feel great to see Derrick White getting back to making his open 3s. It's no secret that Derrick's shooting has been complete dogshit for the last 4 or so games before last night (31/26%), so in a way, I think we all needed the performance he put up in this win. 

It was as if this game was a giant exhale for both the player and the fanbase. Guys go through slumps, it happens. We know by now not to worry when it comes to Derrick's shooting, especially on open looks, and that's why it's important that even in his slumps, he continues to take whatever look he wants. At some point, water is going to find its level and he's going to get right back to being the lethal shooter that we've seen for the last 2 years. On a night when you don't have Tatum available, I'd say that's especially important. 

While the 7 3PM was nice, let's not overlook the work that White did on Cade Cunningham as well. You may remember Cade got whatever he wanted in the matchup last week, but last night The Stock Exchange had that man in hell. White held him to just 6 points on 3-8 shooting in his 19 possessions, he was making play at the rim like he always does, and he did a great job of defending and contesting without fouling.

Basically, DWhite got back to his old self. Locking up the best opposing players, blocking shots at the rim, and cashing a million open 3s. Hopefully now that he's seen the ball go in a few times he can officially move on from his slump, but there's no denying Derrick was terrific in this game.

- The Pistons did their best in the first meeting to try and match Mazzulla Ball, and that's partially what made it so frustrating. A team that can't really shoot going toe to toe with the Celts in terms of 3P production was very annoying. We said at the time it was a fluke magnet ball game, so I was interested in seeing how things looked in this second matchup.

The result? Pretty much what we expected. The Celts had their standard Mazzulla Ball performance

whereas the Pistons came back down to earth and put up a brutal 7-37 performance from deep. Sorry, that's just not going to cut it unfortunately. The math is the math. If you're going to allow the Celts to put up 120+ on 50/40% with 20 3PM, that's a game you're not going to win, especially if you aren't close to matching their volume or production from behind the arc. 

Of those numbers, the 20 3PM is whatever to me. That happens all the time. In fact, they've done it in 10 of their 25 games (40%). What stands out to me is the 34 AST. Part of that is the Celts not having a disaster performance shooting the ball, but it also goes to show that they played the right way. Given Tatum is arguably their best creator, seeing a number like that in a game he didn't play in is very encouraging. It shows you that when this team plays the right way, it doesn't matter who is on the floor. The Basketball Gods reward good ball movement and playing the right way.

A total of 3 players with at least 6 AST and 4 players total with at least 4. I thought the way Jaylen was passing the ball early was contagious because you would think he would have tried to force things offensively to make up for Tatum's absence. In reality, he took just 12 FGA and was tied with Jrue in assists (6) amongst the starters.

- Every time we see Porzingis play he reminds us what an absolute cheat code he is on both ends of the floor. It's hard to imagine he's only played 6 games so far this season, because he looks like he's been there since Day 1. There's no rust

Defensively, it's not just about the blocks at the rim. Sure those are nice, but it's more about how terrified opposing players are to even attempt a shot at the rim. Whenever KP is on the floor that element of an opponent's offense is completely eliminated. Knowing he's back there, it allows the perimeter defense to be even more aggressive, and even on the off chance that someone gets into the paint and tries something, KP is cleaning it up without fouling.

Offensively, the 35ft range is cool, but you also have to remember that at the end of the day, when things break down offensively the Celts can simply run the "throw it to the 7'3 guy" offense, which so far no team in the NBA has shown an ability to stop on a consistent basis. We now live in a world where possessions like this are back in our lives again

and there's simply no stopping this offense once KP finds his switch. He's either shooting over you, or he's getting to the FT line. It's the very definition of a cheat code. You can contest the shot all you want, you're not 7'3. Your hand isn't even close to being a factor once KP turns and goes up for his jumper. 

Then you add in the passing element to KP's game? Holy raging Porzingis in my pants

Again, there are people out there who suggest the Celtics are boring and their offensive approach as ruined the sport of basketball. Sounds to me like they just don't like the sport, because nobody plays a more beautiful style than you NBA Champion Boston Celtics. It's the closest thing we've had in my lifetime to the '86 Celts the way they move the ball. 

- Great minutes from Luke off the bench with his 12/7 on 5-5 and a +16 in his 12 minutes. Nothing flashy, just solid backup center basketball. I may even go as far to say it was one of his best all around performances of the season. The ability to play Kornet/KP together intrigues me, because we saw how devastating it was for an opposing offense to have to deal with that type of length at the rim. How sustainable it is against a better team is to be determined, but I don't hate the idea of Joe going double bigs with that pairing in certain matchups.

- After a bit of a CTE basketball start, I thought Jrue really settled down after the first quarter and looked much more like himself. After a brutal shooting performance against the Grizzlies it was nice to see his efficiency come around as well (4-8, 2-4)

and you give me plus defense with good playmaking and rebounding all while not turning the ball over, and that's exactly how you find yourself in this section. Another guy who was going to have to step up offensively to help make up for Tatum's production, Holiday rose to the occasion and came through. 

It sure did feel like the rest did him some good, which is exactly what I think we were all looking for heading out of this little mini break in the schedule. I wouldn't hate if they continued to find him pockets of rest moving forward, because when he has his legs under him he's a completely different shooter. 

The Bad

- It's a little hard to complain about a game you led by 32, but if I had to pick something it'd probably be the ball control issues. Specifically, Jaylen Brown's ball control issues. He led the team with 4 TOs which wasn't great, and he has at least 4 TOs in 3 of his last 4 games. Coming off the 5 he had against MEM, I'm going to need that to tighen up a little bit.

Teams are doing their best to get into his airspace on the perimeter and force him to put the ball on the floor, and over the last handful of games I'd say that his dribbling hasn't exactly been as tight as it needs to be. 

I'd also like to talk about his passing. While the assist numbers are solid and the way he's seeing defenses continues to get better, I do feel like we're walking the fine line of Jaylen being addicted to jumping while he passes. I get nervous every time he does it because everyone knows you should not be jumping to pass. It's how you get into trouble. Maybe this is just a me problem, but I don't want him to use that as a crutch. It increases the chances he goes up without a plan and forces a pass to prevent the travel, and it just introduces the possibility of disaster. Sometimes you have to do it I get it, but I want that to be the exception and not the norm.

- What are the odds Brad can flip Jordan Springer for Marcus Sasser? I am extremely impressed with his ball pressure/shooting and seeing as how they are getting nothing out of Springer, I'm going to need Brad to at least make the call. I'd say there's a slim to none chance, but you never know.

- Tough night for the Queta/Tillman duo which is a little discouraging. Queta has been up and down which I guess is to be expected, but I have no idea what's going on with Xavier Tillman. Even against the deep bench he still couldn't really do anything in his minutes, and I find that to be so bizarre given how he looked last year. Is he hurt? Is he washed? Is it mental? What is going on?

The Ugly

- And to that point, while it may not be fair to him given his age and experience, I'm going to need Jordan Walsh to start taking advantage of these opportunities. Another game where he most just did cardio, wasn't anywhere close on his corner 3s, and generally still doesn't look close to ready.

Compare that to someone like Drew Peterson who is a little bit older, look at how he's maximizing his opportunity. Between the rebounding and the defense while knocking down the occasional jumper, Drew looks playable,

That's my bar for Walsh in these moments. Just show you are playable. The potential is there, you can see physically he has the frame to be playable, but at some point, the production has to start showing up. Moving forward the Celts are going to need to hit on some of these deep bench wings, and that still feels like we're nowhere close.

- Speaking of the deep bench, shame on them for taking a 32 point lead and trimming it down to just 24. Can they do me a favor and respect the point differential? I feel like this is the 3rd or 4th time Joe has gone to the deep bench with a massive lead and they immediately lose those minutes. It means nothing in the grand scheme of things, but it is annoying. 

I imagine Tatum will be back for the Wizards game, so chances are the good times are going to continue to roll. While not playing in the NBA Cup is a bit of a bummer, I think we'll all take the extra rest and extra matchups against bad teams, especially if this is how the Champs are going to look.