With the NBA Cup in the rearview mirror, the Boston Celtics turned their attention to a newly-scheduled game against the Detroit Pistons on Thursday night. They just played them last week, earning a 130-120 victory, and it was more of the same in this one. Actually, it was worse.
Both sides got off to a slow start, but before long, the Celtics were dominating. Their potent offense and impressive defense was enough to completely stifle Detroit, who looked like a shell of their improved selves on Thursday night. Boston ended the evening with a comfortable 123-99 victory over the visiting Pistons.
Here are three studs and three duds from the Celtics’ win over the Pistons.
Stud - Payton Pritchard
With Jayson Tatum sidelined, the Celtics turned to other forms of offensive production. Luckily, they have plenty, and one of their best is Payton Pritchard, who has been incredible this season.
Everything Pritchard does on the basketball court is that of an All-Star caliber player. The way he moves. The way he gets his shots up. The way he breaks down defenses with ease. This year, in his expanded role, he’s just getting to do all of it on a grander scale.
Against the Pistons on Thursday night, Pritchard was one of the best players on the floor. Whether he was jacking a deep three or slipping by the defense for a layup, Detroit had no answer.
On a night when the Celtics needed production to come from new places, Pritchard was right there. Although, he’s already been doing this type of stuff all season.
It wasn’t his most efficient night, but he was a huge spark in this game.
Dud - Early-game offense
This game was absolutely brutal to watch in the beginning. Both teams came out of the gate as if they were walking through mud, and neither offense could get anything going.
For a minute, it looked like the Celtics could struggle to find a flow without Tatum, but they figured things out eventually. The Pistons did not.
From missed passes to sloppy decision-making, both teams stumbled out of the gates. The difference was, one team has the talent to recover quickly.
Stud - Jaylen Brown
This wasn’t the traditional “Jaylen Brown stud” game. Tatum being out meant he had to take on a slightly different role, and he did a good job of adapting.
Brown’s scoring punch wasn’t the star of the show, as is often the case. Instead, it was everything else that he did. He was creating plays for everyone else ont he team.
His assist numbers reflected this feat, but more often than not, he was the one breaking down the defense so Boston’s offense could flourish—a role usually headlined by Tatum.
This was the type of game Celtics fans should be thrilled to see from Brown, as he proved fully capable of taking on a larger, different role than needed.
Dud - The crowd
This game was pretty dead. As dead as a Celtics home game has been all season. But there was a reason for it.
Since the Celtics didn’t advance in the NBA Cup, they got two games scheduled for them that weren’t previously on the docket—Thursday against the Pistons and Sunday against the Washington Wizards.
As a result, tickets were very cheap, as the Celtics weren’t able to sell them before the game was put in place. But the arena had more empty seats than usual.
Plus, they started the wave. It was lame.
Stud - Luke Kornet
This may seem like an odd choice. Guys like Kristaps Porzingis and Derrick White had stellar performances. They could have easily been a stud. But Luke Kornet made a huge impact.
As mentioned, the Celtics looked a bit shaky at the start of the game. They barely scored in the first few minutes. But it felt like things turned around when Kornet game into the game.
Whenever he was in a spot to score around the rim, Kornet converted, and his rebounding was crucial, too. He finished the game a perfect 5-of-5 from the floor. It may not be the flashiest choice (he rarely is), but Kornet was essential to the Celtics’ success on Thursday night.
Dud - The Pistons guarding Derrick White
This is cheating, but the Pistons were so bad (and the Celtics were so good) that we’re effectively going to have four studs. But so we can phrase it as a dud, we’ll say that it’s about the Pistons defending Derrick White. Because Derrick White was awesome.
A relatively slow start was quickly masked by a barrage of threes, as the Pistons had no answer for when White rose up with confidence from behind the arc.
On top of that, White was his usual dominant self on the defensive end. His shot-blocking was on display, but perhaps more impressive was his willingnesst o never give up on a play, leading to plenty of elite shot contests that threw off Detroit shooters.
White is still one of the most underrated players in the league, and he proved that once again on Thursday night.