The Boston Celtics blew out the Memphis Grizzlies off the back of Jaylen Brown’s career-high. Let’s look at how it all happened.
The Boston Celtics defeated the short-handed Memphis Grizzlies by a final score of 126-107. Without star sophomore Ja Morant, Memphis couldn’t get anything going on the offensive end. In the meantime, future All-Star Jaylen Brown was busy recording a career-high 42 points in only three-quarters of play.
Brown scored his points extremely efficiently, shooting 15-21 from the field and 7-10 from distance. Many of his shots were contested, but it seemed to not matter on this night, swishing everything that he put up.
He went to the free-throw line a team-high six times, grabbed five rebounds, and had four assists, another drastic improvement in his game. Without Kemba Walker, Brown has become a secondary creator — something that’s needed if the Celtics want to find more open shots.
On the season, Jaylen has averaged 28 points per game on 56 percent shooting. His numbers won’t stay that high, but for him to even have a stretch like this to open the season is insanely promising considering this is only his age 24 season.
Jayson Tatum had a good game but took a backseat to Brown when he got hot.
He finished with 16 points on 50 percent shooting, four rebounds, and three assists. He had 14 of his points in the first half, helping the Boston Celtics jump out to a 26 point lead at halftime.
The Grizzlies were not respecting his three, repeatedly going under on screens from Boston’s big men, and he was knocking down the open shots. He went 3-5 from downtown on the night.
Marcus Smart played the traditional shooting guard role in the majority of this game, with Jeff Teague finding himself in the starting lineup due to Tristan Thompson’s injury. Therefore, Smart looked to be more aggressive on the offensive end, going 4-9 from three in the game for 14 points.
He has improved his shot selection so far this season and is making strides to become a more efficient shooter. If he continues to improve his offensive consistency, he will become an even more valuable player.
Teague got the starting nod over rookie Payton Pritchard and played his role effectively. He only scored four points but also had four rebounds, five assists, and four steals.
He often started quick fastbreaks off deflections and defensive plays and is one of the better passers on the team. Ideally, the Boston Celtics wouldn’t want him starting, as they are waiting on Walker to come back, but he is an experienced player that can help provide stability to the team.
Daniel Theis started at center, his more comfortable position, and excelled. Theis was able to rim run more with additional space on the floor, with Teague finding him for quick duck ins and finishes around the rim.
He ended with 12 points and five rebounds in 19 minutes, which are extremely productive numbers for him.
However, Robert Williams is quickly coming for the Boston Celtics’ starting spot at center and isn’t slowing down.
He has shown improvement in every game this season and is showing more offensive tools and capabilities by the day. In this game, he only had tow assists, but made many difficult and quick passes that not many NBA players would be able to see or make.
This tip pass to the corner, in particular, was something special.
As a whole, he finished with six points, 10 rebounds, and four blocks in 23 minutes of play. He also recorded a team-best +/- of +28.
Coach Brad Stevens is going to have to find a way to give him more playing time as he improves, as between Theis, Thompson, and Timelord and Grant Williams, there might not be enough minutes to go around.
Payton Pritchard controlled the bench units against the injury-riddled Grizzlies, scoring eight points in 21 minutes. He has the poise of a 10-year veteran and always seems to know what to do with the ball when he gets in sticky situations.
Multiple times this game he found himself picking up his dribble in the paint and somehow finding a way to get the rock to an open teammate or finish at the rim himself. It will be exciting to see his progress along the season, hopefully becoming an important contributor to the Boston Celtics.
As this game became out of hand quickly, rookie Aaron Nesmith saw extended action in the second half. In 20 minutes, he went 2-7 from the field and 1-5 from three for five points.
On defense, he struggled to communicate with his teammates and looked lost overall. That’s to be expected from a rookie, especially in a shortened offseason. His defensive tools are there, but he needs time to understand the defensive system.
On offense, his shot looks quick and clean, but it just wasn’t falling as much as he would have liked it to on Wednesday night. The potential is there to become a productive 3-and-D wing in this league, but it will take a certain amount of time.
For the game, the Boston Celtics jumped out to an early advantage by getting points in transition.
They finished with 29 fast-break points, 17 steals, and 36 points off of turnovers, jumping all over Memphis. Boston shot 16-39 (41%) from beyond the arc while Memphis only went 9-33 (27.3%).
Without Ja Morant, the Grizzlies looked to Kyle Anderson and Dillon Brooks to increase their offensive load, and they failed to do so, going a combined 9-29 from the field for 25 points.
This was the cleanest game of the year for the Boston Celtics, and they’ll look to keep it going in Detroit on New Year’s Day.