The first Boston Celtics game at TD Garden since May is off to a fantastic start. The Cs lead the Cleveland Cavaliers by 24 points at halftime. Though this is now the Celtics’ third preseason game, they still have yet to face off against any team’s best five, as Cleveland rolled out a combination of role players to start this one.
Is this the starting 5?
Sunday’s first 24 minutes did, however, give fans their first look at what could potentially be Boston’s opening night starting lineup. Payton Pritchard, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Sam Hauser, and Chris Boucher played the opening four minutes and helped the Cs build a quick six-point lead. They pushed the pace in their short stretch together and looked comfortable doing so -- something Joe Mazzulla was probably pleased with.
Despite their success on the scoreboard, rebounding was a glaring issue for this group. Running Boucher at center with his six-feet-nine-inch, 200-pound frame just isn’t going to cut it, unfortunately. Don’t get it twisted, he’s been impressive throughout the preseason, but this just doesn’t seem to be the role for him.
With the losses of Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, Luke Kornet, and Jayson Tatum to a torn Achilles tendon, the Celtics' rebounding struggles are likely going to be a season-long talking point. It’s certainly been a point of emphasis for Mazzulla, who’s continued to pull any player who gives up an offensive rebound immediately.
So far, the Cavs have created XX possessions on the offensive glass.
The Celtics' backcourt is sharper than their frontcourt
On a more positive note, Pritchard looks completely comfortable playing as a starter. He came out on fire in Sunday’s preseason opener, pouring in XX first-half points on x-x shooting. Pritchard WAS the offense to open the game, as 12 of those points came in the first quarter on a perfect 5-5 start.
Anfernee Simons, who was linked to Pritchard all summer, started this game far more comfortably than he did in Friday’s loss in Toronto. He’s tallied up 10 quick points so far on an efficient 3-5 from the field. He hasn’t quite found his footing defensively or on the glass, though, as he was one of the victims of Mazzulla’s short leash a few times.
As weak as Boston’s frontcourt seems, their backcourt is looking good.
Josh Minott is holding the officials accountable
Celtics newcomer is a finger-twirl guy, and a good one at that. Late in the second quarter, Minott knocked the ball away from a Cavs player, was whistled for a foul, and then emphatically prompted Mazzulla to challenge the call. Boston wound up winning the challenge, and Minott is now 1-0 on challenge requests.