Loss to Jazz put a spotlight on the Celtics' biggest flaw

Sometimes it’s not your night. Shots don’t fall, even if they’re the ones that typically find the bottom of the net. Monday wasn’t the night for the Boston Celtics in their 105-103 loss to the Utah Jazz.

They shot just 11-51 from beyond the arc. According to NBC Sports Boston’s Dick Lipe, this was literally the worst three-point shooting performance of all time by any team that attempted 50 or more threes in a game.

There are always going to be a few forced shots mixed into any offense in a given game, but for the most part, the Celtics created the same open looks for the same reliable shooters that they have for years.

“Most of them have been [good looks],” Joe Mazzulla explained postgame. “It was a tough shooting night, for sure. But we have to be able to knock down shots.”

Boston shooting an all-time worst from deep and still having a chance to win this game will put your mind in a pretzel. Did they do enough right to win if they just shot normally? Were there other issues?

There were definitely other things that the Cs could’ve done better, but shooting has been a major weakness for these first few weeks of the campaign.

Entering their matchup with Utah, the Cs ranked 25th in the NBA in three-point percentage, shooting just 32.8% from beyond the arc.

After their fifth loss of the season, it got worse. For added effect, I’ll type out the make/miss total. Boston is now 119-382 this year, which equates to 31.1%.

The Celtics' climb out of this three-point hole gets harder with each miss

As Mazzulla said, his team’s process seems to be right still. The open looks are there, they’re just not falling. Doing the right thing and getting the wrong results, whether it be the ball finding the bottom of the net or the tally in the win/loss column, can take a mental toll.

Confidence can fade, and energy will dip. However, according to Mazzulla, that wasn’t what happened on Monday.

“I don’t think it was anything mental,” Mazzulla said. "I think it was more, just, you can’t go that long without scoring when you’re playing against a good offensive team and a team that executes well.”

This was proven 100% correct in the third quarter, when Boston shot 1-11 from long range, gave up 38 points to Utah, and let them take a lead heading into the fourth quarter. The change in momentum wasn’t an effort thing. It was a successful thing.

If it were an effort thing, they wouldn’t have erased an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter.

Though Boston’s will hasn’t been broken yet, their confidence is showing cracks.

Derrick White, who’s had a dreadful start to his season, making just 26.3% of his triples, was upset with himself after the game. It was obvious that his energy was off as he took the podium in the TD Garden media room, and he’d placed much of the blame for the loss on himself.

"I think for the most part, I've been good with my energy, even though I'm not shooting well,” White explained. “I thought I was s-----today, honestly. I think I'm a big reason why they got back in that game."

To Mazzulla’s point about the lack of making not affecting his team’s willingness to compete, that didn’t seem to be the case with White. The Colorado native battled defensively throughout the game and helped force a few of the turnovers that helped the Cs close the gap in the fourth quarter.

Though he’s still more than willing to bring his best effort, and even willing to take big shots, White’s slump can’t make it easy to continue firing up the looks that are there for him. Unfortunately, it’s the only way that he and his teammates can help water find its level.

Whether or not the Celtics will eventually start making these threes has yet to be seen. Logic would tell you that they should, but only if they stay the course and trust their offensive process, as they’ve done for years now.