Celtics
“Teams are obviously coming for us, and some of them are playing their best basketball against us.”
When the Celtics lost to the 76ers on Christmas Day amid a relatively rough stretch, Jayson Tatum said the team had to take “ownership” and “acknowledge some things that we’ve done that are not so great.” Well, they apparently did that not too long after.
The Celtics held a team meeting where they were honest about their recent shortcomings ahead of their four-game road trip against some of the Western Conference’s top teams.
“We had a good meeting before this trip, just a little bit like looking in the mirror type of meeting and see where we can improve and what we can do better,” Kristaps Porzingis told reporters following their win over the Rockets on Friday. “Teams are obviously coming for us and some of them are playing their best basketball against us. So some small adjustments we want to make and try to keep improving as a team and keep playing the same way.
“Minnesota was a tough game, but we came out with a win, and tonight I felt like that second half really like, stuff was like clicking for us. So far, from the small sample size we have, we’re looking pretty good.”
Boston’s 109-86 win over Houston on Friday marked a 2-0 start to the road trip and its third win in a row. The Celtics defeated the Timberwolves, 118-115, on Thursday to start the trip and had a 54-point win over the Raptors on New Year’s Eve.
In the 13 games prior, though, they had gone 7-6. The Celtics actually remained in the top 10 offensively and defensively over that stretch (sixth in offensive rating, seventh in defensive rating) despite the near-.500 record. But they went 1-6 in games decided by single digits over that time and shot relatively poorly. Their 45 percent field goal percentage was 22nd in the league and their 34.4 3-point percentage was 21st in the league between Dec. 1-30.
Boston has gotten back to playing the way many fans have grown accustomed to over the last couple of seasons in its last three games. It’s shot 51.6 from the field and 45.3 percent from deep while posting a strong 100.7 defensive rating.
Arguably the most impressive part of the Celtics’ three-game win streak was that they’ve won games short-handed while traveling. They were without Porzingis in their win over the Raptors. They didn’t have Porzingis again or Jaylen Brown in their victory over the Timberwolves. After a quick turnaround from Minnesota to Houston, Porzingis returned, but Al Horford and Brown sat out Friday’s game.
As the Celtics haven’t had their full starting five available since Dec. 21, or their whole top eight healthy for a game since Nov. 29, Tatum took some extra pride in Boston’s more recent wins.
“I said it the other day,” Tatum told reporters. “December didn’t go the way we wanted to. We trying to get back to our identity of who we are on both ends of the floor. Just trying to play a better brand of basketball coming up in January. Knowing that we have a bunch of road games, we have a bunch of tough ones.
“Last two games without JB or KP, just trying to figure out ways to win. Those ones feel a little bit – they’re special.”
The Celtics’ next game might be their biggest challenge of the season, regardless of who’s healthy. They take on the Thunder on Sunday. Oklahoma City (29-5) is in the midst of a 14-game win streak, as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has emerged as the MVP frontrunner.
Boston is certainly cognizant of the test that awaits.
“Big challenge,” Porzingis said. “They have great guys that can support him also, so we can’t just focus on him alone. But we’ll see. It’ll be a fun matchup, for sure.”
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