Inside The Celtics

Here's What Stood Out as Shorthanded Celtics Throttled Magic to Extend Home Unbeaten Streak

The Boston Celtics were playing their third game in four days, on the second half of a back-to-back, and they were without Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, and

Bobby Krivitsky

Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports
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The Boston Celtics were playing their third game in four days, on the second half of a back-to-back, and they were without Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, and Luke Kornet -- plus Dalano Banton, a member of their extended rotation.

Making matters even more difficult was that they were facing an Orlando Magic opponent that's won their last four meetings with Boston. They also hadn't played since Monday, a double-edged sword.

But motivated by a determination to get revenge and adhere to their mantra of "winning the day," the hosts of Friday's matchup ignored the excuses available to them, and they played with considerable energy and physicality throughout their 128-111 dismantling of their visitors.

Jayson Tatum, who lived at the rim in this game, generated 30 points, leading all scorers. He paired that with six rebounds and four assists.

Jaylen Brown, who produced one poster after another, also relentlessly attacked the basket. He finished with 18 points, four assists, three rebounds, and a block.

Derrick White, steady as ever, contributed 19 points. His eight assists and four steals led all participants, and he grabbed four rebounds and had a block.

Boston also got 47 points from its bench. Payton Pritchard, who gave the Celtics an early spark to help jump-start their offense, registered 21 points and five assists.

Sam Hauser stuffed the stat sheet with 11 points, seven rebounds, the most in the matchup, four assists, and four steals, tying Derrick White atop the leaderboard in the latter.

Oshae Brissett also chipped in 11 points and helped the hosts force 21 turnovers, which they parlayed into 26 points.

Now for a deep dive into what stood out as the Celtics used their speed advantage, suffocating defense, and exceptional ball movement to return the favor for the Magic's 113-96 victory over them on Black Friday.

1. With Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, and Luke Kornet unavailable, the Celtics went small to start Friday's game vs. the Magic, deploying Lamar Stevens at center.

That allowed the hosts to switch any matchup, which helped them defensively, but Stevens compromised their spacing, almost exclusively operating from the dunker spot.

2. Payton Pritchard provided a spark off the Boston bench in the first frame.

He registered nine points and two assists. The former Oregon Duck also did well defending Paolo Banchero in a one-on-one opportunity where the latter settled for a missed mid-range fadeaway from the baseline. Pritchard's plus-12 plus-minus rating was the highest mark entering the second quarter.

3. There were instances where the Celtics needed to switch faster and stay in front of drives that too easily produced points at the rim. But their versatility and effort translated to Orlando going 1/6 from beyond the arc and only putting 24 points on the board in the first period.

4. At the other end of the floor, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum consistently attacked downhill. They benefitted from effective screens, including a few by Neemias Queta, but also did so in transition and one-on-one situations.

Brown scored ten points and was the only player on either side who reached double-figures. Tatum had seven, helping Boston take a 30-24 advantage into the second frame.

5. The hosts' ball movement was outstanding in the first half. They assisted on nine of 15 field goals in the second quarter, 16 of their first 24 in the first half, and 18/27 in the opening 24 minutes.

Between that, effective screens, and relentlessly attacking downhill, they produced 36 points in the paint and consistently created quality opportunities.

6. Even with the Celtics playing inside-out basketball, generating good looks from beyond the arc, they only made 7/22 (31.8 percent) of their threes. Between that and the Magic manufacturing nine second-chance points, the visitors stayed within 13, entering intermission trailing 64-51.

Still, they had trouble keeping Tatum and Brown from the basket. The former paced all participants with 18 points at the break. The latter, who had 14, produced one poster after another.

7. Third quarters are often when the Celtics are at their worst, and on Friday, ten foul calls before the four-minute mark in the frame created a choppy pace of play.

But Boston, a team that tends to stray from how it built sizable leads, stayed focused and committed to playing the right way, continuing to push the pace and attack downhill.

Defensively, the hosts were everywhere, walling off drives, challenging shots, and forcing six turnovers.

And while it's common for teams on the second half of a back-to-back to come out with considerable energy before losing steam after halftime, the C's never took their foot off the gas, growing their advantage to 101-78 entering the last 12 minutes.

8. And with Boston continuing to throttle down in the final frame, there was never a moment to entertain the idea of Orlando making a run to get back in the game.

With the lead expanding as high as 25 points, Jaylen Brown and Jrue Holiday got the fourth quarter off, and Jayson Tatum and Derrick White logged less than nine minutes -- more than they needed to -- affording the starters valuable rest at the end of their third contest in four days. It's also the second half of a back-to-back and two days before taking the floor again.

9. The Celtics' next game is a rematch with the Magic on Sunday afternoon at TD Garden. The second half of this two-tilt mini-series will tip off at 3:00 EST.

Further Reading

Celtics Evaluate a Key to Mini-Series Sweep of Cavaliers: 'Playing the Right Way'

Here's What Stood Out as Celtics Completed Sweep of Two-Game Series vs. Cavaliers

Celtics Reportedly Agree to Two-Way Deal with Drew Peterson

Derrick White Praises Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown's Impact That 'Doesn't Show Up on the Stat Sheet'

Jayson Tatum Praises Kristaps Porzingis for Allowing Celtics to Spin the Dial Defensively

Wins on the Margins Help Propel Celtics Past Cavaliers

An Empowered Jaylen Brown Strives to Balance Scoring with Playmaking: 'I've Grown A Lot'

Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis Discuss Their Quickly Cultivated Chemistry: 'An Automatic Connection'

Joe Mazzulla Believes Celtics' Second Unit is 'Starting to Develop an Identity'

Under Joe Mazzulla, Celtics Rebuilding Brotherhood Between Past and Present

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Bobby Krivitsky
BOBBY KRIVITSKY

Bobby Krivitsky's experiences include covering the NBA as a credentialed reporter for Basketball Insiders. He's also a national sports talk host for SportsMap Radio, a network airing on 96 radio stations throughout the country. Additionally, he was a major-market host, update anchor, and producer for IMG Audio, and he worked for Bleacher Report as an NFL and NBA columnist.

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