3 Studs, 3 duds from Celtics' 138-129 NBA Cup win over Bulls

After a three-day break full of turkey and thanks, the Boston Celtics got back on the court on Saturday night. They traveled to the Midwest for an NBA Cup showdown against the Chicago Bulls. Boston needed a blowout win to have a chance to advance in the Cup, but by the fourth quarter, they were just focused on trying to win.

Chicago’s high-powered offense seemingly caught the Celtics off guard, as they were challenged to a battle of their own game—threes. The Bulls let it rain from deep, and Boston’s defense didn’t adapt quickly enough. This one went the distance, but in the end, a late-game surge from Payton Pritchard helped Boston eke out a 138-129 victory.

Here are three studs and three duds from the Celtics’ NBA Cup win over the Bulls.

Stud - Kristaps Porzingis’ offense

Both teams found a great rhythm from three in this game, but when the shots weren’t falling, they had Kristaps Porzingis. He was a huge contributor for them last year, helping switch up the style, and that’s exactly what he did in this game.

Porzingis was active from behind the arc, but most od his damage came from attacking mismatches in the post. Whenever Boston couldn’t get an open look at the top of the key, Porzingis ducked inside, got a smaller defender on his back, and went to work.

He got to the free throw line a bunch of times and managed to bully most of the Bulls defenders who tried to keep up with him.

Every time the Celtics needed to get the ball inside and work from there, Porzingis was ready to provide them with that option. His work in the post kept their offensive engine running.

Dud - Jaylen Brown

Something was just off for Jaylen Brown in this game, especially when he got inside the three-point line. Brown actually made his threes at a solid clip, but any shot he took inside that arc looked rough.

The Bulls did a great job of contesting Brown’s drives, and he wasn’t making the tough shots Celtics fans are used to seeing go down.

Though his playmaking numbers don’t show it, Brown did a decent job of creating open looks for his teammates, but his scoring wasn’t there on Saturday night, especially from an efficiency standpoint.

The Celtics star was just a bit too all over the place against the Bulls. It wasn't his night.

Stud - Jayson Tatum

The stats were there all night for Jayson Tatum. He was efficient, effective, and all over the place. But the third quarter was where his impact was felt the most.

After a lackluster first half, accentuated by the aforementioned Vucevic surge, Tatum took it upon himself to take over in the third quarter, especially when Jaylen Brown and Porzingis checked out of the game.

Chicago held a bit of a lead for the first half of the quarter, but then, Tatum went ballistic. He exploded for a 13-point quarter, dishing out some assists and grabbing some rebounds along the way.

Everything ran through Tatum in the quarter, and the energy he put into his offensive game was matched by his defensive efforts.

The Bulls still kept things close, and the Celtics were only up by one heading into the fourth, but Tatum completely stole the show in the third quarter, highlighting an incredible night for the Boston superstar. 

Dud - Defense

The Celtics got a taste of their own medicine on Saturday night. Usually, they are the ones hurting teams with their lethal three-balls. And while they did that to the Bulls, the Bulls did it right back.

Every time Chicago got the chance to fire up a three from beyond the arc, they took it, and Boston didn’t do a good enough job of consistently contesting their shots.

Boston adjusted throughout the night, and their defense wasn’t necessarily awful, but they were a step too slow to close out on a few shots.

On top of that, Chicago did a great job of running whenever they got the chance. Whether this was in transition or off of cuts, the Celtics looked like they were a step too slow a bit too often on Saturday.

Stud - Payton Pritchard

Just like Tatum took over for most of the third quarter, Pritchard was there to provide the Celtics a boost early in the fourth. He was huge for Boston all night.

As per usual, Pritchard was a monster from beyond the three-point arc. He let it fly, and the Bulls just couldn’t get out to him fast enough to slow him down.

Even when Pritchard wasn’t draining triples, the Celtics point guard was able to get inside and make something happen for Boston. And most of his buckets came at a crucial part in the game.

Pritchard gave Boston exactly what they needed on Saturday night.

Dud - Layups

The problem was mostly in the first half, but the Celtics really struggled to make their layups in this game.

Boston wasn’t running in transition and smoking open shots at the rim, necessarily, but whenever they got great post position, it felt like they failed to capitalize.

Jrue Holiday and Brown, in particular, weren’t the most efficient in the restricted area. They were taking some tough shots, but that is also a relative problem in and of itself.

The Celtics’ defense was the much larger issue in this game, but their inability to make the most of their shots inside was less than ideal.