Breaking down how the Boston Celtics survived Blazers bloodbath in the bubble

While it wasn’t always pretty, the Boston Celtics were able to pick up their first win of the NBA restart.

The Boston Celtics survived a valiant comeback attempt from the Portland Trail Blazers in the second game of the eight-game seeding slate, winning 128-124 on Sunday afternoon. The Celtics obtained a 24 point lead at the latter half of the second quarter, yet found themselves trailing at the beginning of the last period.

Boston was led by star Jayson Tatum, bouncing back from perhaps his worst game as an NBA pro against the Bucks. For the game, he finished with 5 points in 32 minutes, only shooting 2/18 from the field. In this victory, he scored 34 points on 50% shooting, also grabbing four rebounds and accumulating a career-high eight assists.

Tatum seemed to find his groove once again, eating up on smaller defenders such as Gary Trent Jr. and Damian Lillard, while taking advantage of slow-footed big men in the pick-and-roll, most notably Hassan Whiteside and Jusuf Nurkic. If Tatum was able to get past his original defender, he was easily able to pull back and take mid-range jumpers, as the center would be stuck in the paint.

As for his assist numbers, part of his career-high was due to Boston’s extremely hot shooting from beyond the arc (18/30), yet he is improving in double-team situations, looking to find the open man. There were multiple instances in this game where he started a good possession filled with ball movement after he was double-teamed off a screen.

Jaylen Brown had his best game in the bubble, shooting 10/18 from the field and 6/8 from three, to finish with 30 points. In the 4th quarter alone, Brown kept his Boston squad in the game, scoring 16 points without missing a shot. After the Portland defense focused more on Tatum, as he led the Boston Celtics in scoring in the first half, Brown got many more opportunities and open shots and was able to capitalize down the stretch to lead the team in crunch time.

In 77 minutes combined, the combination of Tatum and Brown ended with 64 points on 21/40 from the field, 11/16 from three, while grabbing 10 boards, 9 assists, and 2 steals. The future of this franchise proved that they are not only going to be a problem for years to come, but they are a force to be reckoned with in this shortened NBA season.

Along with those two standouts, Gordon Hayward also had himself quite a game. Scoring 22 points on only 10 shots is great efficiency, as he shot 80% from distance. Hayward has been a source of criticism throughout his entire tenure in Boston but as quietly been performing as the best 4th option in the league.

Sure, he wasn’t supposed to be the fourth option when he initially signed his deal with the Celtics, but with Kemba Walker, along with risen/rising stars in Tatum and Brown, he simply has to play his role. If he can act as a secondary ball-handler and creator, while knocking down his option shots, his presence will be invaluable on the court.

As for Portland, they had their way with the Boston defense in the second half, scoring 76 points in the last two quarters, led by Dame Lillard’s 22. For a six-minute stretch between the end of the 3rd quarter and start of the 4th, he couldn’t miss, hitting long threes again and again.

Coach Brad Stevens said after the game that he thought Celtics defenders were going under screens too often, which is most certainly the case. With Dame being the best deep-range threat in the league, you cannot allow him to get an open look at the basket from even 30 feet away.

Surprisingly, after the game got close again, coach Stevens went to Enes Kanter off the bench to give Daniel Theis a rest, instead of incorporating Robert Williams into the gameplan. Kanter had a great game offensively, grabbing five offensive rebounds and 11 points, but struggled against the pick-and-roll offense, one that was emphasized by Portland. Ultimately, the great help defense from the Celtics, particularly Marcus Smart and Tatum, covered for Kanter’s flaws in the later stages of the game. Williams remains a better choice at backup center against teams with outstanding guard play.

The Boston Celtics began to pressure Lillard at the top of the key, so Dame decided to play a bit more passively, finding the open man on the perimeter. When Kanter or Theis would step up after the initial screen, another defender would have to cover the roll man, leaving Gary Trent Jr. open on the wing for multiple possessions. He knocked down practically every shot, scoring 21 points on 7/11 shooting from distance off the bench.

Stevens also tried to incorporate rookie Grant Williams into the rotation, but he struggled when trying to guard opposing center Jusuf Nurkic, as he finished with a whopping 30 points on 12/20 from the field. In only 7 minutes of action, Williams picked up 3 fouls and shot an airball from the corner, as he spent the rest of the game on the bench.

In the last minute of the game, the Boston Celtics found themselves up 3 points and with the basketball. Tatum took a quick screen from Daniel Theis, then drove to the basket to draw defender Carmelo Anthony away from the corner, allowing Jaylen Brown to hit an open three to ice the game. Or, it should’ve been to ice the game.

After Carmelo hit a three at the other end to keep it a one-possession game, the Blazers had to foul, as there was only a 2 second differential between the game clock and shot clock. However, after Tatum passed the ball to Gordon Hayward to break the press defense and bring the ball into the frontcourt, the referees bizarrely called a backcourt violation, rewarding Portland with another chance.

On replay, this call was obviously wrong, as both players were still in the backcourt, but apparently it was not reviewable.

In the ensuing possession, Marcus Smart gets a great deflection, tipping the ball into the air, where Daniel Theis and Jusuf Nurkic collide, fighting for a 50/50 loose ball. Somehow, the whistle is blown on Theis, and upheld after a challenge from coach Stevens. Nonetheless, the war on Theis continues, and the Blazers do the Boston Celtics a huge favor by going for the quick 2 with no timeouts left and only 7 seconds on the clock.

So, the Boston Celtics fought back against an impressive comeback effort from Portland, but we should be happy with the win, and not exactly angry with the blown lead. This Blazers team is fighting for their lives and need to be within four games of the 8th seed Memphis Grizzlies to ensure a play-in tournament. A win would have made passing Memphis a more realistic possibility.

This C’s team is capable of erasing deficits quickly with their long-range shooting, and they got hot from beyond the arc…it’s as simple as that. Sure, the Celtics could have played a more complete game from start to finish, but a win’s a win.

On to Miami. In Orlando, of course.