Celtics send strong message to start the second half of their season

The Celtics started their post-All-Star-break stretch of the schedule on the right foot. They went into Chase Center and put together a dominant display, downing the Warriors, 121-110

Here's what stood out:

Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis were reminded of what they no longer have

Thursday’s matchup marked the first time that the departed duo of Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis faced off against their former team. Man, were they reminded of what they’re missing.

This game was close for maybe eight minutes. From that point on, the Celtics completely outclassed the Warriors in every facet of the game (until the Warriors full-court pressed and made an ill-fated comeback attempt in the fourth quarter).

It felt like Boston created great looks every time down the floor, while the Warriors struggled to get any sort offensive flow going -- of course, that’s to be expected when their best two players, Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler were out, with the latter expected to miss the remainder of the season.

Horford finished the night with five points, eight rebounds, and four assists while Porzingis added a dozen in his debut.

Boston’s ball movement had the Warriors running in circles

Nothing stood out in this game more than the way the Celtics moved the ball. Boston consistently made the right passes and tore Golden State’s defense to shreds.

Whether they put together possessions like this one, where the ball shot around the perimeter with everyone getting at least one touch:

Or something like this, where the Warriors were so in their own heads about trying to read what they were doing, that they allow a simple backdoor cut to annihilate them.

Golden State’s defense wasn’t good to begin with, but the way the Celtics played as a team certainly didn’t make it any easier on them.

The Celtics’ post trade-deadline bench rules

After starting in his first 48 appearances for the Celtics this season, Payton Pritchard seamlessly slid back to the bench when the team traded Anfernee Simons to the Chicago Bulls for Nikola Vucevic.

Not only has Pritchard been incredible (with the exception of the February 8 game against the New York Knicks), but Vucevic is quickly becoming a great elevator for the rest of the team when he checks in. 

The big man’s passing vision plays a large role in the aforementioned ball movement. Not only that, but he’s just a smart player. He fills space well on offense and is clearly becoming more comfortable in Boston’s rotation defense.

Through the first three quarters, the two led the team in plus-minus (Vucevic +26, Pritchard +23) as the Celtics built up a 29-point lead over the hosts.

Pritchard led Boston in scoring with 26 points off the bench with a side of seven assits and six rebounds. Vucevic added nine points and five boards.

Jaylen Brown will do whatever is necessary to win

Fresh off his first All-Star starter selection, Jaylen Brown logged a triple-double to set the tone for the second half of the season.

The star forward read the game well all night and gave the Cs whatever they needed at any given moment. To start, he created offensive for himself and his teammates with an eight-point, four-assist first quarter.

Brown gave Boston a significant boost on the glass, too, grabbing 15 rebounds.

He ended up with 23 points, 15 rebounds, and 13 assists.