Boston Celtics: 3 takeaways from hard fought win over Grizzlies
By Ryan Cinque
The Boston Celtics improved their season record to 7-3 with a 109-106 win over the Memphis Grizzlies. This was a solid team performance for the Celtics but it was Jayson Tatum who really made the difference.
Tatum out-dueled Ja Morant by scoring a game-high 39 points. While both players made big runs for their teams, it was Tatum who made the final one and led his team to a hard fought win.
Jaylen Brown was having a relatively quiet night but he made a few big plays in the fourth quarter to help Boston come out on top. Marcus Smart and Al Horford also made significant contributions to round out the solid play from the starting unit.
There is a lot to unpack from this road win so here are three takeaways from the contest…
Boston Celtics Takeaway No. 1: This team will go as far as Jayson Tatum can take them
It might sound obvious to say that any team will only go as far as their best player takes them but that seems to be especially true for the Celtics. Through the first 10 games of this season, the Cs have struggled without Tatum on the floor and seem to give up way too much to their opponents.
Tatum had a game-high plus/minus of +15 while no other Boston Celtic had more than a +9. Now that doesn’t sound so bad but the box score can be misleading with statistics like this.
The Celtics were in complete control of this game in the third quarter, leading by 12 at one point. The Grizzlies were able to fight their way back into the game with Tatum off the floor and it wasn’t until he came back that they began to stabilize.
This is becoming an early season trend for the Cs and it is definitely something they will need to fix moving forward if they are to compete for a championship.
Boston Celtics Takeaway No. 2: The Cs are a well-oiled machine when Marcus Smart commands the offense as a floor general
Marcus Smart has a tendency to be very hit or miss for this Boston team. On one end he’ll make a great defensive play but then follow it up with an ill advised shot on the other end. Against the Grizzlies however, he was lights out.
The Celtics point guard finished with 15 points, 12 assists, and seven rebounds on 6/11 shooting. He started off this game by making his first few shots and that definitely helped him get comfortable early.
Boston is at their best when he becomes a pass first point guard and takes what the defense gives him rather than forcing things. He was knocking down his shots which is always a plus but his passing was phenomenal.
Smart did most of his damage with the assists in the second quarter where the Cs went on a 20-0 run. His mix of good decision making and well executed passes helped the Celtics get some easy buckets and they quite literally looked unstoppable.
If Smart fully commits to this style of play it will only help Boston moving forward.
Boston Celtics Takeaway No. 3: The C’s late game execution still needs work
The Achilles heel to this Boston Celtics team has been their inability to close games down the stretch. This was also a major problem for them last year when they were struggling, but it was glossed over when they started beating everyone by double-digits every game.
It plagued them in all three of their losses this season and almost cost them against the Grizzlies. The Celtics missed four free throws in a row during the final minute of the game which gave Memphis an opportunity to get back into the game. What should’ve been an near double-digit win turned into a slightly more nerve wracking affair.
Luckily for the Cs, they had enough of a cushion to be able to withstand this type of collapse but it is definitely something that Joe Mazzulla will need to address.