WASHINGTON — It did not come easy on Friday night but the Celtics managed to claw their way to a 108-96 win over the Wizards in NBA Cup pool play. It was the second straight win for Boston overall and improves the team to 2-1 in NBA Cup pool play.
Boston was heavy favorites (16.5 points) against a reeling Wizards squad that entered Friday night having lost nine straight games. However, Boston’s offense kept the visitors playing from behind early, with the Wizards building an 11-point first half lead thanks to miserable shooting nights from Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum from 3-point range (the duo combined to go 3-of-23). Brown (game-high 31 points and 11 rebounds) did manage to punish the Wizards inside the arc to help Boston’s stay afloat
The shooting struggles from that star duo continued much of the night but Boston’s bench provided a spark on multiple occasions with their efficiency. Sam Hauser had his best game in weeks with 13 points off the bench while Payton Pritchard and Luke Kornet chipped in with strong efforts to help get the Celtics to the finish line. Derrick White (eight fourth quarter points) also helped Boston get some separation in the fourth quarter.
Boston’s defense also manufactured 23 points off 20 Wizards turnovers to help the Celtics secure their second straight win.
Boston improved to 13-3 with the win and now heads back to Boston to host a game on Sunday afternoon against the Wolves.
Here are four takeaways from the Celtics win on Friday night:
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Luke Kornet and Xavier Tillman move up the depth chart for one night: The veteran center has been relegated to third string center in recent days amid Neemias Queta’s rise in the depth chart. Kornet has his first DNP-CD of the year in Tuesday’s win over the Cavs but he was back in the rotation Friday night with Al Horford (illness) sidelined. Kornet looked like the more consistent center Friday night, helping anchor a strong defense when he was on the floor. Kornet was a team-best plus-11 in the first half and closed out the second quarter with the starters while also getting the nod to begin the second half. Xavier Tillman also got a chance in the third quarter and Mazzulla elected to stick with him at center to close the game for his defensive versatility. With Queta’s defensive warts starting to show more, Kornet may end up back with the starters now more regularly when Boston is shorthanded after building a strong chemistry with that group last year.
A miserable shooting night for the stars: The Celtics feasted on plenty of open looks against an overmatched Wizards defense but they weren’t able to make them pay early. Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum and Derrick White combined to go 2-of-19 from 3-point range in the first half, as the team shot just 26.9 percent from beyond the arc in the first half. Tatum ended up going 0-of-10 from 3-point range on the night while Brown and White bounced back in the fourth quarter. Boston’s bench helped to pick up some of this slack with efficient shooting nights by Hauser/Pritchard/Kornet but this was as lifeless a performance from Boston’s offense as we’ve seen all year with lackluster ball movement. Thankfully for them, it came against one of the worst teams in the NBA.
Celtics stay alive in NBA Cup: The Celtics kept their hopes of advancing out of NBA Cup pool play with the win, improving to 2-1 in Group C play. However, the closer than expected matchup against the lowly Wizards did them no favors in regards to point differential where it will still be an uphill climb for Boston to win their division or land a wildcard. Boston finishes up pool play in Chicago next Friday night and they will likely need to win that one by a substantial margin in order to advance to the knockout round of the tournament.
Malcolm Brogdon shows some fight against former team: It’s been over a year since the Celtics traded away Malcolm Brogdon as part of the Jrue Holiday deal but Friday night marked the first game he played against his ex-teammates. Brogdon came out with urgency early for a surprisingly feisty Wizards squad, posting a team-high 13 points and 7 rebounds in the first half to help spot Washington a halftime lead. He finished with a double-double (18 points, 10 rebounds) in 26 minutes. Brogdon is in his first week of action all season after sitting out the first month with a thumb injury. These types of performances make him one of the most likely players in the league to be dealt as the Wizards will seek assets for their rebuild with Brogdon in a contract year. Brogdon is overpaid at $20 million but he’s bound to help some playoff team by the trade deadline if he can stay healthy.
