The Boston Celtics entered their matchup with the Memphis Grizzlies as the fourth-worst three-point shooting team in the NBA at 32.8%. Not only were they towards the bottom of the league in three-point efficiency, but they hadn’t even cracked the 40% mark for a single one of their 12 prior games.
That streak came to an end on Wednesday when Boston shot a season-high 41.2% (21-51) en route to a 36-point victory over Memphis.
For fans who have sat through every Celtics game so far this season, this had to be cathartic. Payton Pritchard and Derrick White combined to shoot 8-16 from long range, after struggling thus far, with each still shooting below 30% for the year.
If Boston is going to hit their ceiling in the 2025-26 campaign, these guys, and their shot-making will play a huge role.
“I mean, we made shots,” Joe Mazzulla said of his team’s efficient night from beyond the arc.
The lack of shot-making from the Celtics has been so frustrating
Sometimes, the NBA truly is a make-or-miss league. Nine days ago, the Celtics fired up the same number of threes (51) but made 10 fewer in a disappointing 105-103 loss to the Utah Jazz. It was a record-worst performance for any team in NBA history with 50+ attempts in a single game.
Had they just not been the absolute worst, the result would’ve been different.
There wasn’t much difference in how Mazzulla’s team played against the Grizzlies and how they’ve played all season. They made shots, as he said.
“I thought we've been getting really good looks and playing good offense, just not seeing the results,” he explained. “So I think the process has been there. Tonight, you kind of saw the result of that. But you know, we got to keep that up every night, you know, be able to continue to execute, to find good looks.”
To be honest, the good process, bad results aspect of the season is what’s made the team’s 6-7 start so frustrating. Sure, the Celtics aren’t perfect, but there’s no way that they should be losing so many games nor should they be towards the bottom of the league in scoring with the way that they play.
Whether that’s the type of shots they create, the number of shots they create, or the consistency with which they outshoot their opponents. Boston still plays winning basketball on a nightly basis; they just don’t always shoot like winners.
There’s a reason why they’re almost always within striking distance at the end of losses. Take Tuesday’s loss to the Philadelphia 76ers as an example. So many things went wrong. Boston shot 28% from the field in the first half. Quentin Grimes hit a half-court buzzer-beater at the end of the third quarter. Justin Edwards shot 8-9 from the floor for 22 points.
Boston still had the ball with a chance to tie or win the game at the end of regulation.
There’s no reason to expect the Celtics to all of a sudden shoot 40% from three every game. But, at the same time, it feels like sooner or later they’re going to distance themselves from the league’s worst shooting teams.
Whenever that happens, they’ll be on pace to win far more than just six of every 13 games.