CelticsWeek #15: Homecoming – CelticsBlog

It took a Memphis Grizzlies group absent 13 gamers to make the Boston Celtics look dominant once more, however the Celtics however recorded one other profitable week because the All-Star Break approaches. Let’s talk about.

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Boston Celtics, Week 15: 3-1 report, +42 differential

W vs New Orleans, 118-112

W vs Indiana, 129-124

L vs LA Lakers, 114-105

W vs Memphis Grizzlies, 131-91

It’s unusual to say a few group that leads their convention by 5 video games as of this writing and hasn’t misplaced consecutive video games since November, however proper now, these Boston Celtics is likely to be in as a lot of a hunch as we’ve seen from them to this point this 12 months. They have been going to lose their undefeated house streak ultimately, however after a 20-0 begin, going 3-2 at TD Backyard over their subsequent 5 house video games is a little bit of a pointy decline. That, taken alongside some crimson flags in wins over New Orleans and Indiana, qualifies as a bump within the street.

The wins over the Pelicans and Pacers have been each odd. It was as in the event that they have been mirror photographs of one another. In opposition to New Orleans, the Celtics got here out chilly, falling behind early earlier than crawling their method again behind a robust second half. In opposition to Indiana, they seemed unstoppable for the primary quarter-and-a-half of the sport, compiling a ridiculous 81 factors on the half however permitting the Pacers again into the combo within the third quarter. These have been each powerful wins that featured high quality crunch time efforts, however to say the Celtics seemed significantly nice in both can be a stretch.

Shedding to a Lakers group absent LeBron James and Anthony Davis is a disappointment, even when not an altogether significant one. These two-game, cross-conference season sequence clearly say little or no within the grand scheme of issues, having pretty negligible impact on playoff seeding. And it’s not like there’s a really excessive chance of seeing the Lakers within the postseason. Nonetheless, it looks like a present falling into your lap once you’re handed a sport with out two gamers of that stature, and fumbling that away in such a vogue stings.

There wasn’t almost a lot intrigue on the court docket towards Memphis, although. The Celtics bounced again from the Lakers loss by placing in a workmanlike effort and burying a Grizzlies group that was absent an astounding 13 gamers from its lively roster. GG Jackson led the Grizzlies in photographs, and whereas we’ve got to increase kudos to the rookie for stepping up in an absurdly troublesome state of affairs, his 24 shot makes an attempt let you know nearly the whole lot you want to find out about that sport.

As an alternative, the story of the Memphis sport was about who was on the sideline. Marcus Good returned to the TD Backyard for the primary time since his offseason commerce as a part of the Kristaps Porzingis deal, and the Boston crowd was greater than prepared to indicate him some love. The Celtics performed a video tribute for the nine-season Boston vet, and shortly thereafter named him the night time’s Hero Among Us for his work as a group determine within the metropolis. It was overwhelmingly obvious that the town of Boston nonetheless very a lot loves and trusts their Defensive Participant of the Yr.

One throughline this week: the Celtics’ rebounding appears very unhealthy. With a frontcourt rotation that isn’t essentially dominant on the glass, they’ve sometimes relied on collective effort to outlive on the defensive boards. Final 12 months, it labored — they have been the league’s finest defensive rebounding group. That effort is slipping, although, as they rank seventh in defensive rebound proportion (72.5%) on the 12 months and a brutal nineteenth (71.2%) over their previous 10 video games. Opposing groups are getting far too many second probabilities towards this roster proper now.

Photograph by Paul Rutherford/Getty Photos

Participant of the Week: Jayson Tatum

4 GP, 35.9 MPG, 28.8 PPG (53% FG, 43% 3PT), 8 REB, 6.3 AST, 1.5 STL, 1 BLK, +20

Resisting the urge to call Good as this week’s recipient out of sheer sentimentality, that is truly one thing of a troublesome week to choose from. Tatum nearly wins by default. Jaylen Brown missed the Memphis sport and performed poorly towards the Lakers. Porzingis had a comparatively robust week, together with a pleasant outing towards the Grizzlies in Brown’s absence, however struggled towards Indiana. Jrue Vacation was largely nameless, as was Derrick White (aside from an ideal effort to seal the win towards the Pacers).

It’s not an undeserving win, nonetheless. Tatum was lights out towards each Indiana and Memphis, scoring not less than 30 in every sport, and much like final week’s sport towards the opposite Los Angeles group, he not less than had a pulse towards the Lakers. Belief me, it’s by no means significantly thrilling to choose the perfect participant on the group on this spot. All the identical, they’re typically simply going to deserve it.

One development that feels value noting: his three-point capturing seems to be capital-B Again. For the reason that begin of the brand new 12 months, he’s been capturing higher than 40% from behind the arc on his typically massive quantity (42%, 7.7 3PA), which has helped pull his season common again to 37%. This week, he was a blistering 17-of-39 from deep.

Tatum’s relationship to the three-point shot has at all times been attention-grabbing. He began his profession as a sniper — a high-percentage, high-volume shooter enjoying on rosters that didn’t count on him to create fairly so many photographs. The sidestep threes that he constructed his fame on seemed good, in fact, however enjoying alongside ball-dominant scoring guards like Kyrie Irving and Kemba Walker afforded him a extra manageable shot food regimen than he’s requested to shoulder now.

Absent these All-Star guards, his shot creation accountability has elevated dramatically, which has seen his effectivity understandably drop. He’s sat round 35% capturing from behind the arc in every of the previous two seasons, fueled partly by a decline as a pull-up bounce shooter. That’s not as unhealthy because it appears; the gravity created by the specter of Tatum as a scorer supplies big worth by itself, and he’s been dominant contained in the arc. However seeing the long-range percentages tick again as much as what we all know is nearer to water stage for Tatum’s talent stage has been satisfying, and as loaded as this offense is, it’s very a lot sustainable.

The Parquet Play: A sport ball for the rook

As an enormous fan of his sport, it’s my absolute pleasure to place Jordan Walsh’s first profession bucket on this area this week. It’s no flukey jumper or something like that both; that is an exclamation level.

The Memphis sport was clearly effectively out of attain for Walsh to have even been on the court docket, and he stays a methods away from seeing common enjoying time on the NBA stage. However that’s an thrilling solution to announce your self to the league. I very a lot nonetheless assume this child has some actual juice to his sport, and it was nice to see him get some prolonged run on Sunday night time.

Across the League: Cleveland surging, Philadelphia in jeopardy

The Jap Convention feels significantly unstable proper now. As of this writing, whereas the Celtics take pleasure in a five-game lead on the competitors, the waters behind them are remarkably muddied. 4 groups at present sit inside 1.5 video games of one another, Cleveland, Milwaukee, New York and Philadelphia, with the Indiana Pacers looming barely behind with Pascal Siakam now in tow. It’s an extremely unstable batch of groups.

We begin with the Cleveland Cavaliers, whose arrow is pointing sharply upwards, winners of 14 of their final 15 video games. Not way back, their season seemed to be falling into disarray, with All-Star Darius Garland and frontcourt prospect Evan Mobley hitting the injured checklist for prolonged durations of time. As an alternative, the group discovered a brand new identification round their remaining stars, Donovan Mitchell and the perpetually underrated Jarrett Allen. The shooters are popping — Dean Wade and Sam Merrill have turn into scorching scorching three-point specialists — and the protection has quietly snuck up right into a tie with Boston for second within the NBA with a 110.6 defensive score.

Enjoying a radically completely different model of ball absent their two cornerstones — notably, deploying fewer double-big appears which have struggled when Mobley has been wholesome — there have been comprehensible questions on how the duo can be reincorporated within the midst of this scorching streak. The reply, up to now, is incomplete; each are nonetheless getting their legs beneath them, however that hasn’t stopped the Cavaliers from profitable. As of now, they’ve eked forward of Milwaukee for the second seed within the East by fractions of a proportion level.

Truly falling into disarray, then, are the Philadelphia 76ers. After per week of discourse encompass Joel Embiid’s absence for yet one more street sport towards the Nuggets — he hasn’t performed in Denver since earlier than the pandemic — Embiid returned to the court docket on January 30 towards the Warriors and confirmed… that sitting him was in all probability the appropriate name. The MVP candidate seemed like a shell of himself for half-hour earlier than Jonathan Kuminga fell on his left knee, tearing his meniscus and placing his season in jeopardy.

Understatement of the century right here: it is a nightmare for the Sixers. The extent of Embiid’s damage shouldn’t be but identified, however the two prospects seem more likely to be both 1: they take away the torn part of the meniscus, placing Embiid again on the court docket in 1-2 months however possible placing his long-term well being in danger, or 2: repairing the meniscus, possible ending his season. It’s the identical lose-lose state of affairs that Robert Williams III confronted two seasons in the past, and Embiid is a a lot bigger participant than Williams, with a higher stage of pressure positioned on that knee.

The Cavaliers received’t understand how excessive their ceiling may conceivably be till Garland and Mobley are again to 100%. The Sixers received’t know what the longer term holds for his or her season till they know whether or not Embiid will be capable to take the court docket for the postseason. These are groups transferring in radically completely different instructions, and have wound up on the middle a really dramatic rebalance of energy among the many contending groups of the East.

Subsequent Up: Rounding out the homestand

This week, the Celtics’ prolonged keep in Boston involves an finish. After a seven-game stint within the cozy confines of the TD Backyard, they’ll be hitting the street as soon as once more. The ultimate two video games of the homestand are pleasant ones: Wednesday brings the Atlanta Hawks, within the midst of a really disappointing season and at present greedy onto the ten seed within the East, and Friday will carry a go to from the bottom-feeding Washington Wizards. From there, it’s time to hit the street for South Seaside to face a Miami Warmth group that has misplaced eight of its final 10 video games.

On paper, this must be a 3-0 week, however as we noticed towards Los Angeles, you’ll be able to’t rule something out till the buzzer sounds. We’ll be again subsequent week to interrupt all of it down.