Summer League Recap: Celtics Fall to 0-2 in Vegas

After going 3-0 in Utah, the Celtics fall to 0-2 in Vegas

The lack of size on the Boston Celtics Summer League roster continues to hurt them. It’s frustrating to watch the Celtics not being able to contest shots in the paint and getting killed on the glass. It’s like an identical image of watching the Celtics in the playoffs.

The Phoenix Suns out-rebounded Boston by 10 and held the Celtics to just 35.2 percent shooting, resulting in an 87-74 win for the Suns. At times, Boston looked lost without Terry Rozier running the point. Demetrius Jackson got his first action at point guard, and he struggled to create offense.

His three-point shot was atrocious as all three came up short, and he only managed to record four points and three assists on the night. For a player who was expected to be drafted in the first round, he’s having a hard time adapting to the NBA game. Right now, he’s working his way to sticking in Maine as a rookie.

The Celtics’ first pick, Jaylen Brown, had his worst game of Summer League thus far. He finished with five points, four rebounds and three assists in 24 minutes. To make matters worse, he shot 0-of-6 from the field and 0-of-3 from three. His poor shooting included a couple of missed layups where he able to blow by his defender but completely whiffed on an easy layup. These kind of shooting struggles were expected from Brown, and it highlights the type of rocky season he could be in for.

While the third overall pick struggled, Marquese Chriss dominated the game. He had a couple of highlight dunks as he finished with 15 points and 14 rebounds. Chriss did commit six fouls and four turnovers, though. He was still the most dominant player on the court last night as the Celtics had no answer for him. Brown had a nice block on one of his layup attempts, but, besides that, he was able to get into the paint at will.

The game got really chippy in the second half when second-year players Devin Booker and R.J. Hunter started jawing back-and-forth at each other. It got both teams really pumped up and intensified the game. It was somewhat odd seeing this intensity in a Summer League game, but, at the same time, you love to see young players playing with passion.

Both three-point shooters had great games. Hunter had 17 points and two steals on 4-of-6 shooting from deep, although dealt with foul trouble again. Booker showed why he’s on Team USA’s Select Team as went off for 24 points and seven assists on 3-of-5 shooting from three. Both went hard at each other on defense and treated this game like the regular season.

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For the Suns, Alan Williams also added 14 points and 12 rebounds, highlighting their dominance on the glass. Dragan Bender only had three points and five fouls in his second game of Summer League action. He was a non-factor for most of the game as it was easy to forget he was even on the court.

For Boston, Jordan Mickey was the leading scorer with 18 points and six rebounds. Although, the most impressive Celtic on the floor last night was Abdel Nader. The 58th pick in the draft has arguably been one of their most impressive rookie this summer.

He hustles, is able to get to the basket and does all the dirty work that goes unnoticed. Nader has started putting up bigger numbers in Vegas, and last night was no exception. He finished with 13 points and six rebounds on 6-of-13 shooting. You can argue that he’s been Boston’s most productive rookie in Summer League thus far, and the Maine Red Claw season is looking bright with him on the team.

Next: Celtics: Looking Back at the 2012 Draft

The Celtics will be off tonight but back in action on Tuesday night at 6PM ET against the Dallas Mavericks. Boston will look to get their first win in Las Vegas before the Summer League Tournament starts.

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