Here's What Stood Out in Celtics' Loss vs. Clippers: Kawhi Leonard and Paul George Were Up for the Challenge, a Fatigued Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown Were Not

Kawhi Leonard and Paul George got the best of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown Monday night, besting a Celtics team that succumbed to fatigue.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Monday, a matchup billed as a battle between two of the NBA's top tandems, got undermined by the visitors' fatigue.

Jayson Tatum struggled for the second-straight game, finishing with 20 points on 20 shots and going 2/8 from beyond the arc. That comes on the heels of him scoring 18 points on 21 attempts Saturday against the Warriors. 

Foul trouble cut into Jaylen Brown's first-half minutes, but he registered 21 points on 9/15 shooting, even while going 1/6 from long range.

As for Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, the latter generated a game-high 26 points, while the former provided 25, nine rebounds, and six assists. 

While the effects of a long road trip were evident in the play of Tatum, Brown, and the Celtics as a collective, the Clippers' stars were up for this matchup. 

Now, for a deep dive into Los Angeles' 113-93 win, Boston's second-straight loss, dropping the Celtics to 3-2 on this trip.

Celtics' Offense Stagnates in First Frame

The game started with not-so-stellar defense played on both sides. But beginning with a Reggie Jackson three at the 7:50 mark, the Clippers staged a 23-3 run in six minutes. The Celtics' offense went scoreless for three minutes during that span.

There were plenty of makeable shots, including Jaylen Brown missing an open three off an effective screen by Blake Griffin and a Griffin shot long-range attempt that went in-and-out, but for much of that drought, Boston's offense went stagnant.

Too often, shots were getting launched after one or no passes; it didn't help that they were coming early in the shot clock.

Fortunately for the visitors, Malcolm Brogdon went on a 5-0 burst to help them right the ship. On the heels of that came a chaotic sequence where Paul George and Grant Williams traded turnovers; George missed a layup at the rim, then Terance Mann did, got his rebound, and got blocked by Brogdon.

Jayson Tatum then raced down the court, couldn't get a floater to fall, but collected his miss and finished on the other side of the rim to beat the buzzer. That trimmed the Celtics' deficit to 29-25 entering the second quarter.

Celtics Score Season-Low 47 Points in the First Half

A lack of on and off-ball activity and energy continued plaguing Boston in the second frame.

That's understandable, as this grueling road trip that started in Brooklyn, went north of the border, then took them out west, comes to a close, but it's disappointing after Saturday's poor showing in an NBA Finals rematch with the Warriors.

Malcolm Brogdon did his part for the Celtics, registering a team-high 12 points, doing so on 4/7 shooting, including knocking down two of his four threes. The only blemish for Brogdon is he had four turnovers.

Tatum went into the break with 11 points on 4/12 shooting, going 1/5 from beyond the arc. However, he did grab eight rebounds and dished out four assists.

Brown scored six points, capitalizing on three of his six shots. But due to committing three fouls, he played 13 minutes. For comparison, Tatum logged 19.

With the offense out of sync, Boston made only 42.5 percent of its field goal attempts, including shooting 6/21 (28.6 percent) from long range.

Los Angeles taking a 56-47 advantage into the third quarter was also a product of the hosts winning on the margins.

The Clippers took 15 free throws, making ten of them, adding three more points from the foul line than the Celtics, who went 7/9. LA also turned six offensive rebounds into seven second-chance points, converted nine Boston turnovers into six more points, and outscored the visitors 6-1 on fast-break opportunities.

George entered the locker room with 13 points, leading all scorers. Marcus Morris Sr. had 11, and Kawhi Leonard registered ten, including scoring over Marcus Smart in the low post on multiple occasions.

Clippers Prevent Celtics from Sustaining Runs in the Third Quarter

The third frame started with an encouraging development for Boston as Smart pushed the pace, leading to Brown attacking the rim and getting to the free-throw line. But he went 1/2, and George drilled a jumper from 17 feet. It was a sign of how the quarter would unfold.

Every time the Celtics showed a pulse, they'd miss a clean look, and the Clippers wouldn't, helping the latter maintain a double-digit lead.

Los Angeles ended the frame with a 7-2 burst, outscoring Boston 32-25 in the period, taking an 88-72 advantage into the final frame.

On a positive note, Grant Williams made multiple impressive plays off the dribble. First, he spun past George for a lefty layup off the glass.

the celtics are down but look at this grant williams stuff pic.twitter.com/yHGvQvXmVx

— James Herbert (@outsidethenba) December 13, 2022

Then, he attacked Leonard off the dribble, knocking down a turnaround jumper from just below the free-throw line.

Grant helping to keep the C's in this one 💪 pic.twitter.com/I032siYwFi

— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) December 13, 2022

Williams is in for a substantial and well-deserved payday this summer.

No Fourth-Quarter Magic Up the Celtics' Sleeve

At the rate teams take and make threes and a faster pace of play leading to more possessions, no lead is safe with 12 minutes left on the clock. But there were no signs Boston would stage a comeback on Monday.

The prospect of the Celtics doing so became even less likely as they became increasingly frustrated by the officiating. Boston reached its boiling point when George threw the ball backcourt, but an official, standing right in front of the play, declared it got tipped.

Multiple Celtics turned to vehemently express their disagreement with the ruling, leading to Luke Kennard burying an open three. That pushed LA's lead to 97-80 with 8:27 remaining. Again, time was less of an issue than how the game was unfolding.

That three served as a springboard to a 10-0 run as the hosts built a 24-point cushion, their most sizable advantage of the night.

With 6:44 on the clock at that point, given the Celtics were fatigued, nearing the end of a long road trip that started in Brooklyn, took them north of the border, and then to the west coast, Joe Mazzulla could've pulled his top rotation players.

He did so with 3:16 remaining, waiving the white flag and calling it an early night before tomorrow's tilt against the Lakers.

Brown, who registered a team-high 21 points, and Tatum, who scored 20, combined for 41 of Boston's 93 points. Brogdon added 18 off the bench.

But jacking threes with tired legs led to the Celtics taking 39 of their 76 shots from beyond the arc, despite converting on only nine of those (23.1 percent).

As for the Clippers' star tandem, George finished with a game-high 26 points, while Leonard produced 25, nine rebounds, and six assists in LA's 113-93 win.

Those 93 points represent the fewest Boston's scored this season.

Up Next

The Celtics' wrap up their road trip with a Tuesday tilt against the Lakers. The game tips off at 10:00 pm EST. Inside The Celtics will have content related to the game coming out before, during, and after. And follow @BobbyKrivitsky on Twitter for updates and analysis from pregame to post.

Further Reading

[Film Room] What's at the Root of Jayson Tatum's Struggles vs. Warriors on Saturday?

Former Celtics Fan-Favorite Reportedly Available via Trade, Should Boston Make Move?

Here's What Stood Out in Celtics' Loss vs. Warriors: Boston Punked by Defending Champs in NBA Finals Rematch

Here's Where Celtics Star Jayson Tatum Landed on NBA.com's Latest MVP Ladder

Here's What Stood Out in the Celtics' Win vs. Suns: Dominant Defensive Performance Paves Way to Blowout Victory