Boston Celtics: 3 takeaways from first home win against Raptors

The Boston Celtics picked up their first home win of the season on Wednesday night against the Toronto Raptors.

The Cs led wire to wire and maintained a double-digit cushion for the majority of the game. A solid team performance at home was a thing of beauty for fans.

It’s no secret that Boston has struggled at home this season, so it was great to see them put together a full 48-minute performance and get an easy win.

Here are 3 takeaways from Wednesday’s game.

Boston Celtics takeaway No. 1) Robert Williams and the Cs got revenge.

In the lead-up to Wednesday night’s matchup against the Raptors, Robert Williams III spoke with the media about what to expect.

"“Along with coach’s game plan, we plan on going out, playing our hardest, and getting revenge.” Williams said."

The Boston Celtics did indeed get revenge, beating the Raptors 104-88 after suffering a 32 point loss in the second game of the season.

Williams played with that mentality all night and finished with 16 points, 13 rebounds, two steals, and a blocked shot.

He did most of his damage in the first half and on the offensive glass. The C’s big man grabbed eight offensive rebounds and played with tremendous energy on both ends of the floor.

In an offense that is built around other players, Williams has chances to make an impact around the rim and he took advantage of his opportunity.

Williams can be the X-factor for the Celtics this season and Wednesday showed just a glimpse of his potential.

Boston Celtics takeaway No. 2) Tatum makes an impact despite shooting slump

Jayson Tatum has had a rocky start to the season. His numbers have not been as good as expected, but that hasn’t stopped him from making a big impact.

Against the Raptors, the 2x All-Star scored 22 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, and dished out eight assists.

Despite shooting just 8-24 from the field, he finished with a plus-minus of +18. He likely would have finished with a triple-double if the Boston Celtics hit a few more shots but that didn’t stop Tatum from dropping a few nice dimes.

One of which saw his drive to the basket draw three defenders which led to a nice wrap-around no-look pass to Williams for an open dunk.

Tatum’s development as an all-around player will be crucial to the C’s success. Once he finds his shooting rhythm again, he will have numbers that could warrant another All-NBA selection.

Boston Celtics takeaway No. 3) Cs are a much better team than record indicates

The Boston Celtics have won three of their last four games, and have won them with relative ease.

It’s impossible to erase their poor start but when looking at their record with context, it is a lot better than it seems.

Four of the team’s six losses could easily have gone their way and they could have a record of 9-2.

They’ve lost two double-overtime games, had one of the most bizarre fourth-quarter collapses, and a bad foul from Marcus Smart that allowed Luka Doncic to take and make the last shot of the game.

It isn’t fair to say the Boston Celtics deserved to win each one of those games, but when looking at the complete picture they are far better than their record indicates and they’re beginning to show it.

Their improvement on the defensive side is easily the biggest reason for the turnaround.

In their last four games, they are giving up only 88 points per game which include back-to-back games where they held their opponents to below 80 points. Compare that to some of their previous games and they look like a completely different team.

The Celtics still have some ground to make up in the standings, but this team is definitely better than they appear on paper and are trending in the right direction.