This was always going to be a tough game. Fresh off a gritty win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday afternoon, the Boston Celtics had their work cut out for them against a red-hot Houston Rockets squad.
Paul George was sidelined for rest. He’s been the Celtics’ second-best player this season. And Boston felt his absence in a big way.
Without George active, the Celtics’ lack of consistent offense cost them the game. They fought hard — it was a truly impressive effort up until the last few minutes of the fourth quarter — but it just wasn’t enough.
Boston’s five-game win streak was snapped on Monday night, as they fell to the Rockets, 109-93. A truly solid effort, but not nearly enough to earn a victory.
Up: Jayson Tatum’s decision-making
This is a new version of Jayson Tatum. It’s only been seven games, and that much is already obvious. And the threes aren’t even falling yet.
But maybe that’s the reason why. Tatum has been forced to find other ways to score. Other ways to be effective. Tatum is still going to take plenty of shots from long range, but he doesn’t need the three-ball to be successful.
Tatum controlled the entire game on Monday night. He had the ball on a string. When he needed to get downhill, he did. When he needed to run the pick-and-roll, he did. Everything ran through him.
With George sidelined, the Celtics needed Tatum more than ever. As soon as he hit the bench, Boston’s offense went awry. He’s just that good.
The shots didn’t fall. Houston’s defense eventually bothered Tatum enough to throw him off. But his decision-making remained sound. He made good choices with the ball in his hands, even if the result didn’t work out in his favor. Even in a loss, it’s clear that the Celtics are getting a new-and-improved Tatum this season.
This was the worst game Tatum has played since the loss to the Detroit Pistons on Opening Day. But if this is the floor, it’s a pretty great floor.
Tatum ended the night with 19 points, six rebounds, and nine assists (but five turnovers) while shooting 5-of-16 from the field, 1-of-7 from deep, and 8-of-8 from the free-throw line.
The double-big lineup to open the second half (we’ll discuss that later) helped improve Mitchell Robinson‘s stock a bit, but it was still a pretty rough showing for Boston’s new big man.
In fact, we might be past the point of “pretty rough showing.” The first six games of the year were “pretty rough showings” for Robinson. We might be encroaching upon “unplayable” territory.
Obviously, that can’t happen. The Celtics spent a ton of money on Robinson this summer. He’s a good player. But right now, he’s out of shape. He’s lumbering up and down the court. He’s failing to remain in the correct defensive position.
The Celtics consistently lose the minutes when he’s on the court. It’s more than a trend at this point. It’s reality. Boston has to keep playing him to help him get in shape so he can be ready for later in the season, but Neemias Queta and Luka Garza are far better options right now. Robinson ended the game with four points and four rebounds while shooting 2-of-2 from the field.
For the second straight game, the shots didn’t fall. Offense was tough to come by for the Celtics. Even when they generated great looks, they were only falling some of the time.
Yet the Celtics managed to stay in this game. When Tatum hit the bench, Boston managed to keep it close. When Houston went on a run, Tatum got himself to the line to stop it. When shots didn’t fall, Boston hit the offensive glass.
It was an impressive display of versatility. Winning in different ways. Not being dependent on one area of basketball. The Celtics did a great job of that against the Orlando Magic, and they did it again on Monday night, regardless of the result.
But at the end of the day, shots have to fall if you want to win basketball games. They didn’t on Monday in Houston.
Heading into the season, Payton Pritchard was supposed to be one of the Celtics’ top-scoring options. I thought he could be their second-leading scorer behind Tatum. That hasn’t happened.
Pritchard has always struggled against length. He’s small. That’s going to happen. But with a larger role comes greater expectations. And Pritchard hasn’t quite lived up to those expectations.
Against the Rockets, Pritchard couldn’t get anything going. The wide-open shots didn’t fall, and he didn’t bring much to the table in terms of his own shot creation, either.
By the end of the night, Pritchard had accrued just four points, three rebounds, and three assists. He shot 0-of-7 from the field nad 0-of-5 from deep range. He shot 4-of-6 from the charity stripe.
When Luka Garza is on the court, good things happen. That’s been true all season. He’s not the best defender — that’s his biggest crux — but he brings so much in every other area of the game.
Garza’s offensive rebounding is huge. Always has been. But his 3-point shot really gave Boston a lift on Monday. The Celtics needed points early in the game, and he was seemingly the only guy who could give them those.
He showed off some active hands on defense. He set good screens. Garza always finds a way to positively impact the game. He finished the night with 14 points, three rebounds, and one block while shooting 4-of-9 from the floor and 4-of-7 from beyond the arc.
Derrick White wasn’t great on Monday. He needs to step up in the scoring column on nights like this. The ball-handling was still there, and he made some hustle plays, but the scoring wasn’t good enough.
Whenever the ball wasn’t in Tatum’s hands, the Celtics’ offense struggled. Pritchard couldn’t give them much. Neither could White. Both were stunted by Houston’s length and ball pressure.
Boston hung around for most of the night. It was a valiant effort on the second night of a back-to-back against a talented Rockets team. White even picked up the pace a bit at the end of the game. But he needed to give the Celtics more.
White finished the night with seven points, two rebounds, and three assists. He shot 3-of-12 from the field and 1-of-5 from beyond the arc.
Queta deserves a place on the list as an “up” and a “down.” His minutes to open the second half were integral in keeping the Celtics in this game. He looked great.
Unfortunately, Queta also had no answer for Alperen Sengun. He got absolutely torched in the paint. Queta was completely outmatched. Truly an up-and-down performance.
That said, Queta did nail a three, and he was also a monster on the offensive glass to open the third quarter. Alongside Robinson in the double-big lineup, Queta looked huge. That size really bugged the Rockets down low.
Speaking of the double-big lineup, that group looked good. Queta had a bit more freedom to run around and cause havoc. It looked a lot better than it did during the preseason.
Joe Mazzulla went back to some double-big minutes later in the third with Robinson and Garza. That didn’t look quite as good. But the double-big vision definitely makes sense against a team with as much size as the Rockets.
Baylor Scheierman deserves a shoutout, too. He stepped into the starting lineup in the absence of George, and he looked good. There were a couple of defensive missteps, but overall, his confidence spearheaded an impressive performance.
Hugo Gonzalez played well, but he found himself out of position on defense a few too many times. That said, the offensive rebounding and off-ball movement were great. Jordan Walsh, on the other hand, didn’t end up doing much against the Rockets.
Also, credit to former Celtic Marcus Smart. He was one of the best players on the court in this game. Doing all of the things that endeared him to Boston fans for years. Drawing offensive fouls. Grabbing offensive rebounds. Making hustle plays. He was a thorn in the Celtics’ side.
Love him or hate him, Smart’s effective. He knows how to get under guys’ skin. And a lot of the time, it works.
