(Photo courtesy: sports.yahoo.com)
The Boston Celtics, with probably one of the best starting fives we have seen in a long time thanks to blockbuster trades, have started 3-0, and it has proved that it doesn’t matter who out of the five has the best game, you can count on someone on this team to have a good game, while someone else has maybe a not so good game, and this team will be fine. Let's get into some game recaps, because whose game is it? The Celtics, YEAH!
The Celtics beat the New York Knicks last Wednesday in a thriller. While the Celtics had a big lead for a decent amount of the game, they fell behind by seven with less than five minutes to go. The Celtics then started hitting shots and playing good defense, and once the fans started chanting at Porzingis, who had a great game, karma came immediately, and the Celtics started off the season 1-0 with a win in New York City at Madison Square Garden.
Jaylen Brown was the one who would struggle in this game, only having 11 points and missing all four three-pointers. But Jayson Tatum and Kristaps Porzingis combined for 64 points, Tatum going 3-8 from three-point land, and Porzingis going 5-9. Tatum also put in 11 boards, and Porzingis had eight. Jrue Holiday played a good game in his debut and played lockdown defense on all the Knicks star players, leading them to miss a lot of shots. Derrick White, was D-White, getting two steals and a block on defense, putting in 12 points, and having a decent game. Despite Pritchard and Hauser going a combined 0-7 from land, and the Knicks actually shooting better from land than the Celtics did, they were able to eke out the 108-104 win in the Garden, and on the road. The Knicks also went 14-26 from the free-throw line… Onto Miami. 1-0.
This game against the Heat shows that the starting five is one not to mess with. All players had over 15 points, and the question of “the Celtics have no bench” was answered in this game. If all five starters play a good game, you might not need much from the bench who combined for eight points. Hauser and Pritchard did combine for 2-3 from land, and despite not scoring, Al Horford grabbed 10 rebounds. Oshae Brissett also appeared in the game for 14 minutes and helped to grab a lot of offensive possessions, grabbing five rebounds. He was in the paint battling for boards, making his playing time worth it. If you don’t know already, he has a TikTok account and makes videos, pretty cool stuff.
For the starters, Holiday scored a little bit more, with impressive stats of 17 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists, and putting in a block. Derrick White was everywhere, leading the team with 28 points, and got three blocks, and when he chased a player down you bet the crowd was standing because if you’re an opposing player on a breakaway and you think you're good, Derrick White is probably behind you. Some believe White was snubbed from the NBA's top 100 players for this season, and after this game, I’d agree. The Celtics went 16-39 in total from land and did find themselves down by multiple digits in the first quarter, but not for long. The Heat also went 16-33 from land, and the Celtics, for the second game in a row, shooting with less efficiency from land, still pulled out a 111-119 win against the Heat, and you bet when Jaylen Brown got that three pointer with 20 seconds left to seal the deal, the Garden was buzzing. It was a beautiful performance by the Celtics in an Eastern Conference rematch, onto Washington, 2-0
It’s a beautiful day in the state capital if you’re Porzingis going against your former team, ha, right? Well, he had a pretty good game, scoring 15 points and going 7-9 in shooting but he didn’t need to do all the hard work, minus a pretty funny block against Jordan Poole. At one point in this game, Jaylen Brown was just HIM, going 7-9 from three-point land, and it was midway through the second quarter. He did finish 8-13 with 36 total points, but balled out in the first half, showing at least tonight, that he was worth the millions of dollars he got. Tatum had 33 and had a good shooting percentage, while the rest of the starting lineup didn’t need to do anything special, minus two blocks from Holiday, Pritchard getting seven rebounds and six assists, struggling from land going 0-6, Hauser 2-9 and a combined 0-10 in the fourth quarter. The Celtics went deep into the bench, and Lamar Stevens played five minutes, getting five points, and Svi Mykhailiuk drilled a three in 4:50. Despite a tough fourth quarter, the Celtics still won by 19, going 19 for 53 from distance. Certainly, they have the shooters, they just have to make shots, but when you win by 19, albeit against the Wizards, you're doing something right. Tatum and Brown combined for 69. Wow. Danillo Gallinari, a former player put this one on his calendar as an important game and had three points. Onto Indiana, 3-0.
Preview: The Celtics host the Indiana Pacers tonight at 7:30 in their second home game of the season, before heading off to Brooklyn on a Saturday night. This is the second in a row of those matchups that seems like one of those “easy wins”. Prove it, play hard, play well, and hopefully the bench shooting woes are just something to start the season and they will be able to shoot the ball a little bit better and contribute well. The Pacers do have Tyrese Haliburton, who is one of their best youngest players on the team, who can put in a double-double on any given night, and Myles Turner, who can also put up a 20 and 10 (points and rebounds). They are 2-1, so winning this game might not be easier said than done. Go Celtics, bleed green, and check back next Wednesday, for another Celtics weekly recap.
Wesley Callery, Dean College sportswriter for the Dean Daily, listen to the Wes Cal midday rush on Saturdays from 2pm-3pm on Power 88, 88.3.
Major: sports broadcasting
Instagram: wescalleryy
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