Inside The Celtics

The Top 5 Plays from Saturday's Celtics-Spurs Game

A welcome to the NBA moment, an excellent ATO, and Jayson Tatum's calling game headline the breakdown of the top five plays from Saturday's Celtics-Spurs matchup.

Bobby Krivitsky

Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports
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Beautiful ball movement leading to an open three for Marcus Smart, Malaki Branham's welcome to the NBA moment, an excellent ATO, and Jayson Tatum calling game headline the breakdown of the top five plays from Saturday's Celtics-Spurs game.

Beautiful Ball Movement Leads to an Open 3 for Marcus Smart

Defenders often underestimate the quickness of Malcolm Brogdon's first step. Here, he utilizes that to build momentum, burrowing into Romeo Langford as he gets into the paint.

Brogdon's drive draws Malaki Branham, so the former kicks the ball to Derrick White in the corner. Jeremy Sochan closes to him, but Zach Collins doesn't react quickly enough, and Marcus Smart capitalizes, knocking down an open three.

Malaki Branham's Welcome to the NBA Moment

Branham makes a critical mistake, launching this shot with Robert Williams closing out to him. The Timelord annihilates the latter's three-point attempt, tracks down the loose ball, then goes in for a layup.

Robert Williams' Rejection Turns into an Old-School Three-Point Play for Jayson Tatum

First, Robert Williams rotates to deter a potential entry pass to Charles Bassey, who seals Brogdon at the basket.

Instead of going that route, Josh Richardson swings the ball to Branham. Sam Hauser's anticipating Branham to do the same and move the ball to the corner, so he plays accordingly. Rather than going through with what typically happens in these situations, Branham gives Hauser a ball fake, then rips through and gets into the paint.

But here comes the Timelord to erase his shot (again). Bassey recovers the rock but turns it over as the shot clock expires, and Boston takes off the other way.

Jayson Tatum, building momentum as he comes downhill, goes right at Doug McDermott, uses his off arm to create separation, and gets the layup plus the foul.

He then cashes in on the free throw, turning this into an old-school three-point play.

Celtics' ATO Produces a Thunderous Jayson Tatum Throwdown

On a fantastic ATO by the Celtics on their first possession after a Spurs timeout, Brogdon swings the ball to Williams, then turns to set a screen for Tatum.

But just as Branham used what Sam Hauser's accustomed to seeing against him, instead of curling off the Brogdon pick, Tatum cuts backdoor as Stanley Johnson tries to jump the route, then finishes with an emphatic one-handed jam.

Jayson Tatum Calls Game

With the game tied at 116 and less than 35 seconds left, the Celtics want the ball in the hands of their best player.

As Tatum's working to get open, he and Langford bump into each other, and you can see Tatum reach and put his hand on his head before he gets the inbounds pass. When it arrives, he immediately attacks off of the catch, driving baseline.

As Langford fights to recover, Tatum uses his off-arm to create separation legally, slams on the brakes, then buries a step-back fadeaway jumper, which proved to be the game-winner.

Further Reading

Here's What Stood Out in the Celtics' Win vs. Spurs: Boston Never Trails but Has to Fend Off San Antonio in Game That Goes Down to the Wire

[Film Room] How the Celtics Limited Luka Doncic's Impact as a Scorer and Facilitator

Boston Fans Will Absolutely Love What Jaylen Brown Said Before Celtics-Mavericks Tilt

Here's What Stood Out in the Celtics' Win vs. the Mavericks: Adhering to the Right Approach and Tatum's Triple Double Leads to 29-Point Victory

The Top 5 Plays from Thursday's Celtics-Mavericks Game

The Reasons Behind the Celtics Trading Noah Vonleh to the Spurs

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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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