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The Boston Celtics are officially out of the schneid.
After going winless on a three game road trip and falling to ninth place in the Eastern Conference, the Cs rebounded in a much needed 118-112 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
For the first time in a long time, the Celtics competed in energy. Kemba Walker was at his best and despite Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown having had tough nights offensively, the team were able to win. The bench certainly played a huge role in their ability to do so.
Highlights: Kemba leads Celtics to 118-112 win over Pacers
Here are our thoughts on that and more in our three instant overreactions to the Celtics’ win over the Pacers.
1. The Celtics have found the perfect bench rotation.
Perfect is always a relative term. Could the Celtics have a better bench? Definitely.
But with what they have, have they found the perfect combination? He really wants to.
Against the Pacers, the Celtics bench made a first-rate effort throughout the competition. Jeff Teague looked rejuvenated en route to a 14-point exit. He drove aggressively to the rim and equalized for a team record in free throw attempts with eight.
Payton Pritchard put in some nice effortless plays and hit critical hits, especially in the first half, to help the Cs keep pace with Indiana.
Most impressive of all, Robert Williams continued to perform at a high level. Williams provided unlimited energy and made tons of plays near the edge on both sides of the ball. He finished the game with 14 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, three blocks and one steal and solidified his place as the team’s top center.
These three played a major role in the C’s victory and they should continue to play great minutes on the bench. And once Marcus Smart is able to come back, that bench-four rotation isn’t going to be bad at all.
That said, this bench group has yet to prove that they can continue to deliver that kind of energy every night as the season progresses. So while it’s certainly a great performance, it’s a bit too early to definitely call it perfect bench rotation.
Verdict: Slight overreaction
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2. Kemba Walker should remain seated back to back.
Since returning from a knee injury that kept him out of the first 11 games of the season, Walker has not been consistent. But one thing he always did well was to play after skipping the last end of back-to-back games.
With the extra day of rest at his disposal, Walker looked fresher on the pitch. And the numbers confirm it. Incredibly, in four straight games after sitting back to back, Walker has recorded a season high in points.
And in five games after a day of managing the load this season, Walker is averaging 24.6 points per game. In all other games combined, he averages 12.8 points per game.
Needless to say, Walker’s efforts helped the Celtics secure victory over the Pacers while Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown struggled extensively. As long as he’s playing well while sitting back-to-back, the Cs should keep making him sit – unless they find themselves in a must-see scenario.
Verdict: not an overreaction
3. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown’s shooting fights cause concern
Tatum and Brown haven’t shot the ball well in recent games. In fact, that can be an understatement.
Against the Pacers, Tatum and Brown 9 of 30 from the field and combined for only 24 points. They’ve also struggled against the Hawks and combined they’re only shooting 28.8% from the field in those two games.
So, this begs the question, are Tatum and Brown’s recent struggles of concern? In short, no. The Celtics shouldn’t be too worried.
All players experience seizures. This includes aspiring stars like Tatum and Brown. More importantly, the two played with better energy against the Pacers and managed to hit a few clutch shots to keep Boston in a back and forth with Indiana.
If this continues in the long term, then the Cs should be worried. But for now, it’s just a few tough games. No need to press the panic button just yet.
Verdict: overreaction
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