They force the Celtics to not play like a bunch of bitches.
You have to be tough when you play the Knicks.
You have to perform under pressure and maintain your physicality for 48 minutes.
That’s the punch in of bounce back I think we were all hoping to see.
You also never want to lose your getaway game.
Admit it, had the Celts dropped that game last night it would have changed things a little bit.
But now they enter the big rematch with the Sixers feeling good, and I think that stuff matters.
Winning the games you’re supposed to win is all part of building the resume of a contender.
You have to constantly remind yourself that what we are watching with him isnotnormal.
A few things have stood out to me about Tatum’s start to the season.
Most important of course is his consistency.
Players that reach that level don’t just put up big numbers, they do it every single night.
When was the last time you ever wondered if Jokic was going to show up?
You know who else is doing that?
Steph Curry
Nikola Jokic
Giannis
That’s it.
It’s almost as if we’re getting March Tatum in October/November.
What a welcomed sight that is.
Then in a blink of an eye, he flips a switch and ends the game with 35.
He scored or assisted on just as many points in the 4th quarter as the entire Knicks team.
It just felt normal right?
That my friends, is a luxury.
I LOVE how much the Celts are pressuring the ball full court this season.
I can’t ever remember a Celts team pressing this much, and I hope they never stop.
How many times did we see the Knicks start their offensive possession with 10-12 seconds on the shot clock?
This is something from the preseason that I’m happy has translated into the real thing.
- I want to say this as clearly as I possibly could.
Kristaps Porzingis is changing my life.
I don’t know how else to say it.
Whatever you may have hoped the fit would look like, it’s better.
Whatever production you thought Porzingis would have in this system, it’s better.
Whatever you thought his two impact might be this season, it’s better.
His range is ridiculous.
He’s not just taking shots right behind the line, he’s shooting from Worcester.
The connection he’s already formed with Jaylen might be the best part of this acquisition.
This team is a contender, and they become even more unstoppable when Porzingis embraces his role like this.
- Quickly, let’s have a little check in on Mazzulla Ball
Yup, still rules.
Another instance where the ball moved, the Celts made their open 3s, and they locked in defensively.
This is why I always laugh when people STILL think Joe isn’t the guy.
Does he screw up?
But Mazzulla Ball clearly works when the players do it.
The sample size is big enough.
He’s had at least 5 AST in 2 of his last 3 games.
Is that not the exact throw in of passing production everyone wanted to see this season?
Since the Sixers disasterclass, Jaylen is averaging 26/4/4 on 50/38% splits with under 3.0 TOs a game.
I’ll take that.
No NBA player is perfect.
You check that many boxes in a game, chances are it’s a win.
The thing is, we already knew Hauser could shoot.
The most impressive start to his season is the work Hauser is doing defensively.
Even if Joe doesn’t want to say why
I’ll tell you why.
It’s because NBA players think because Hauser is white, that he’s slow and cannot defend.
Players only have a 40% scoring frequency when attacking Hauser in isolation.
He is putting virtually everyone who tries it in jail, and it happens every night.
- It’s not that complicated.
When the Celts take care of the ball (11 TOs), they win.
Seems simple enough, yet ya know, sometimes they forget that simple fact.
- I really liked how Jrue clawed out of his rather bizarre first half performance.
But the second half?
When they needed Holiday to step up and actually remember he’s pretty good, he delivered.
I appreciate the off night.
Since coming back, DWhite is shooting just 32/27% over his last 4 games.
What I don’t want to happen is White stops being aggressive because of this slump.
Makes and misses will come and go, but the approach needs to stay the same.
The Celts have way too much talent to basically be Jayson Tatum merchants.
The second he steps off the floor they cannot become the worst team in basketball.
This is especially true when we see multiple starters on the floor during those minutes.
I’m surprised Wyc hasn’t banned him for life.
- Why does it seem like whenever these teams play we have to live through insane Knicks prayer heaves?
It’s like every 50/50 play goes their way which is why these games always feel so close.
- As awesome as Tatum was in this game, I didn’t exactly love his off ball defense.
It’s OK to make the simple play.
The Ugly
- For as long as these two teams exist, defensive rebounding will always be a problem.
Every Knicks game feels the same if we’re being honest.
Then you get a stretch where theirs 3s start to drop and you find yourself in a rock fight.
I know the Knicks are an elite OREB team, but guess what?
The Celts are at the top of the league in defensive rebounding.
So why does it feel like they become allergic to rebounding whenever these teams play?
It’s very annoying.
We now turn the page to tomorrow night in Philly.
If that’s going to be the case, H2H records matter.
