In the final contest of a treacherous five-game week for the Boston Celtics, the Memphis Grizzlies were in the building on Saturday night. Highlighted by Marcus Smart’s first time playing against the Celtics since the deal, this game had a ton of buzz around it, and once the action got going, it wasn’t hard to see why.
Memphis played the Celtics very, very well all game long, and they were up by double digits for long periods of the night. But Boston wouldn’t go away, and by the time the early fourth came around, they had the lead. It was a back-and-forth affair for most of the final frame, but the Celtics couldn't get the job done, falling 127-121 to the Grizzlies.
Here are three studs and three duds from the Celtics’ loss to the Grizzlies on Saturday night.
Stud - Payton Pritchard
On a night when the Celtics were struggling to find a rhythm on the offensive end, Payton Pritchard was there. Just one game after a scoreless outing against the Milwaukee Bucks, Pritchard was back.
He nailed three triples in the first half and continues to be a reliable source of offense for Boston throughout the game—and the Celtics desperately needed that.
And as usual, Pritchard came in clutch in big moments. As the third quarter wound down, he nailed a three that pushed Boston’s momentum to its tipping point. In the fourth, these shots kept on coming.
Pritchard is one of the most underrated scorers in the league, and it wasn’t hard to see why on Saturday night.
Dud - Jrue Holiday
It wasn’t completely his fault, but Jrue Holiday had a brutal night against the Grizzlies. Memphis’ entire game plan was to let Holiday be the Celtics’ primary scorer, and it worked.
Holiday couldn’t hit the ocean if he was shooting from a boat. It was an extremely inefficient game for the veteran guard and also a great reminder of why he thrives in such a niche role in Boston.
All game long, the Grizzlies’ bigs were leaving Holiday open in the corner, and he just couldn’t hit his threes consistently. Holiday even tried to get some things going down low in the post, but those shots didn’t look too good, either.
The Grizzlies forced Holiday into the role, but he didn’t make them pay for it.
Stud - Neemias Queta
He didn’t play a ton of minutes in this game, but when he was in the game, Neemias Queta showed some very solid flashes. It was an encouraging contest for the Portuguese big man.
Obviously, the monster slam he threw down stands out, but on top of that, he was also doing a solid job of being in the right spots on both ends of the floor. His hustle, athleticism, and instincts shined through despite some inconsistencies this year.
Some nice defense under the rim was matched by improved vision on the offensive end. One play in the first half stood out, in particular. Queta caught the ball deep under the basket but still found a perfect pass-out to a three-point shooter.
Boston rolled with Queta for most of the second half in a double-big lineup with Porzingis (or Luke Kornet), and it looked awesome. He gave the Celtics some great minutes on Saturday night.
Dud - Transition defense
The Celtics got absolutely burnt on Saturday night. Every time the Grizzlies got a stop, they sprinted down the floor, and Boston just wasn’t keeping up.
Whether it was Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., or anyone else on the roster, the Grizzlies made it a point to push the pace and get out in front of the Celtics. It helped them grow a consistent lead throughout the game.
As Boston struggled to stop the bleeding, their offensive woes weren’t helping, and it was the exact opposite of the best of both worlds—it was the worst of both.
Stud - Second-half Kristaps Porzingis
The first half of this game was brutal for Kristaps Porzingis. He has some nice blocks, but the shots weren’t falling, and he was getting pushed around a bit.
But when the third quarter came around, after he jogged off an ankle injury scare, Porzingis turned up the heat. The third quarter was a major turning point in this game, and he was one of the main reasons why.
Everything from dunks to threes to and-ones were in the cards for Porzingis, and it was great to see after how rough his first half was.
Dud - Jaylen Brown
This was an extremely weird game for Jaylen Brown. He was efficient, but he barely took any shots. All night long, it seemed as though he wasn’t looking to score, but not in a pass-first kind of way.
Instead, it just looked like Brown wasn’t a big part of the Celtics’ offensive game plan, which is wholly unusual. Holiday’s large offensive role had something to do with that, but Jayson Tatum and Porzingis were getting their shots up.
Brown wasn’t necessarily bad in this game, but it was a dud because of how odd the showing was. It just didn’t look like Brown out there.
Even when Brown started to be a bit more aggressive in the fourth quarter, it didn't look great, and his turnover problems were brutal. He was a bit too sloppy with the ball, and it capped off a very unusual evening for the Boston star.