For the first 28 minutes of Sunday’s season opener against the Pistons, it looked like the good vibes from a strong training camp were going to translate into immediate on-court success.
The Celtics built a 22-point lead in Detroit against a Pistons team that won an Eastern Conference-best 60 games last season.
The only problem? NBA games last 48 minutes.
After taking that 22-point lead at the 8:32 mark of the third quarter, the Celtics were outscored 71-41 the rest of the way, including a stunning 23-0 run in the fourth quarter, as they fell 121-113 to drop their season opener for the second consecutive year.
Here are some of the good — and, of course, the bad — from Boston’s season-opening loss.
Good: Paul George
It’s a shame George’s dazzling debut will be overshadowed by this meltdown.
The 36-year-old, who has faced plenty of skepticism since being acquired as part of the deal that sent Jaylen Brown to the 76ers, was arguably the best player on the court.
George finished with a game-high 38 points on 12-of-21 (57.1%) shooting from the field and 7-of-12 (58.3%) from three, with five rebounds, three assists, and five steals. He did, however, have three turnovers.
His 38 points were the most ever by a Celtic in his team debut, surpassing Kristaps Porzingis’ 30 points against the Knicks in 2023. He and Porzingis are the only Celtics in franchise history to score 30 points in their Celtic debut.
Defensively, George picked up where he left off in the preseason, making his presence felt both on and off the ball.
This looked like prime George: a well-rounded, dominant two-way player.
He won’t score 38 points every night, obviously, but George is well-suited for success in this Celtics system.
The biggest question, as always, is whether he can stay healthy. For now, though, he is motivated, healthy, confident, and proving he can still play at a very high level.
Bad: Jayson Tatum
Tatum deserves credit for how he ran the offense, finishing with a game-high 11 assists and just two turnovers despite facing constant pressure from Detroit’s defense. He also held his own defensively, but beyond that, it was a debut to forget for Tatum.
He struggled to find his rhythm offensively, finishing 6-of-23 (26.1%) from the field while attempting just one free throw, which he made.
Tatum shot 3-of-9 (33.3%) in the paint, 3-of-7 (42.9%) on mid-range attempts, and 0-of-7 from three-point range.
He was even worse in the second half, shooting 1-of-10 (10%), including 1-of-5 (20%) in the fourth quarter. He didn’t make his first shot after halftime until there were 2:31 remaining, hitting a pull-up jumper with the Celtics trailing by 11.
That’s not good enough from the team’s best player. The Celtics will struggle to win games when they are outscored while Tatum is on the floor (-5).
Good: Derrick White’s shooting
The Celtics need Derrick White to rediscover his shooting touch this season.
White shot 39.4% from the field and 32.7% from three during the regular season last year, marking the first time in his career that he shot below 40% from the field. His numbers dipped even further in the playoffs, when he shot 32.1% from the field and 27.3% from beyond the arc.
At media day, White said he believed he had addressed those issues over the offseason.
The early returns were promising.
White shot 7-of-13 (53.8%) from the field and 3-of-7 (42.9%) from three.
As a team, the Celtics shot 17-of-42 (40.5%) from three. Prior to the loss, the Celtics were 116-7 in the Mazzulla era when shooting 40% or better from three.
Bad: Second-half perimeter defense
The Celtics held the Pistons to 4-of-18 shooting (22.2%) from beyond the arc in the first half. In the second half, Detroit shot 11-of-22 (50%), led by Javonte Green (5-of-8) and Duncan Robinson (4-of-5). The Pistons went 5-of-9 from three in the fourth quarter alone, with Robinson hitting three of his four attempts and Green making two of his three.
Some of that was Green and Robinson getting hot and making tough shots, but the Celtics also gave up a few clean looks. They compounded those mistakes by fouling 3-point shooters three times, resulting in seven points for Detroit. That can’t happen.
It was encouraging to see the Celtics get 10 steals, though. Maybe this is finally the year they force more turnovers, something they did well during the preseason.
Good: Payton Pritchard getting to the free-throw line
Pritchard got to the free-throw line eight times, making seven of his attempts. His eight free-throw attempts tied a career-high, a mark he has now reached three times in his career.
Last season, he averaged a career-high 1.7 free-throw attempts per game.
Perhaps this is another area of growth for a player who has improved every year he’s been in the league.
Bad: The bigs
The frontcourt will be a strength for the Celtics this season. It certainly wasn’t on opening night.
Mitchell Robinson (four points, three rebounds, one assist, one steal, two blocks and two turnovers in 18:06) and Neemias Queta (three points, four rebounds, two assists, one steal, two blocks, one turnover and four fouls in 22:07) were outplayed by Detroit’s frontcourt. Luka Garza also struggled, finishing with two points, two rebounds, four fouls, and a turnover in 8:21.
Meanwhile, Jalen Duren had 22 points and nine rebounds. His nine rebounds were more than Robinson and Queta combined.
The Pistons limited Robinson and Queta to just two offensive rebounds combined.
Boston lost the rebounding battle 49-39, including a 14-12 deficit on the offensive glass, and was outscored 24-16 in second-chance points.
The Celtics simply didn’t get enough production from their bigs.
Bad: The turnovers
Protecting the basketball has been a defining trait of Joe Mazzulla-coached teams. Since he took over, the Celtics have ranked seventh, first, and second in turnover percentage. Last season, they posted a 12.9% turnover rate, the third-lowest mark in the NBA. They have also finished in the top two in fewest total turnovers in each of the last three seasons.
That wasn’t the case on opening night.
Boston turned the ball over 14 times, leading to 17 points for Detroit.
The turnovers shouldn’t be a major concern. The Celtics hadn’t faced the type of defensive intensity and pressure the Pistons bring in the preseason, and they did a better job taking care of the ball as the game progressed. Boston committed just five turnovers in the second half.
Bad: Letting the offense affect the defense
Empty possessions in the second half helped Detroit storm back and win this game.
It allowed the Pistons to get out and run, leading to easier offense against a defense that wasn’t set.
In the fourth quarter, the Celtics shot 10-of-26 (38.5%) from the field, including 3-of-11 (27.3%) from three. Detroit, meanwhile, shot 11-of-19 (57.9%) from the field and 5-of-9 (55.6%) from beyond the arc.
That’s how you get outscored 39-25 in a quarter.
