After the Celtics’ 118-115 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday night, Jayson Tatum said that he felt January was a chance for the Celtics to rediscover their identity.
“We had a tough December. Not our normal standard,” Tatum said. “Looking forward to January as a great opportunity to get back to our identity.”
On Friday night, against a Houston Rockets team that entered the night sitting in third place in the Western Conference at 22-11, that identity was tested.
The Celtics had their excuses lined up. It’s almost expected for them to drop one of these four games on their Western Conference road trip, which features four teams with records of .500 or better. Those teams are slotted in the 1st (Thunder), 3rd (Rockets), 5th (Nuggets), and 8th (Timberwolves) spots in the West standings—all across a span of six days.
It’s a grueling stretch.
To make matters worse, Boston didn’t get to their hotel until 2 AM, 1,200 miles from their previous game. They were playing the second night of a back-to-back against a young, tough Rockets squad in the middle of a five-game homestand. Houston was coming off a day of rest, while the Celtics were without Al Horford (rest) and Jaylen Brown (shoulder).
Sure, Houston was missing key players too—Tari Eason, Amen Thompson, and Jabari Smith Jr.—but this game still tested the Celtics’ mental toughness. And they passed with flying colors, cruising to a 109-86 win, trailing for just 2:48 all night.
The traits that make the Celtics such a dominant team were on full display. Facing the league’s second-ranked defense, coached by Ime Udoka—who Celtics fans are very familiar with for his defensive schemes—Boston had five players finish in double figures. Derrick White led the way with 23 points, followed by Jayson Tatum (20 points) and Payton Pritchard (20 points). Boston shot an impressive 50.6% from the field, 48.7% from beyond the arc, and posted an offensive rating of 125.4.
Defensively, after giving up 31 points in the first quarter, the Celtics locked in and hit one of Joe Mazzulla’s key benchmarks over the subsequent three frames, holding the Rockets to under 25 points in each (25, 16, 14). Houston shot just 19-of-61 (31.1%) from the field and 7-of-26 (26.9%) from beyond the arc over the final three quarters and managed only 30 points in the second half— their lowest total in a half since 2018.
“I thought they got the better of us to start the game from a physical standpoint, and then I thought we did a great job responding on both ends of the floor,” Mazzulla said. “Defensively, just the ball pressure from the guards. Playing double big, having great rim protection, and defending without fouling. I think they had 11 second-chance points in the first quarter, three in the second, and then we did a great job from there on out. So, I just thought we were physical at the point of attack, had great ball pressure, and I thought our bigs and bigs gave us great rim protection.”
Despite being shorthanded, it was a dominant two-way performance that came from top to bottom. Every Celtic who played more than 10 minutes finished with a positive impact in the box score. And with the win, the Celtics improved to 12-3 this season when missing two or more of their top six (White, Holiday, Brown, Tatum, Porzingis, Horford).
“I don’t think it’s an easy back-to-back,” White said after the game. “I did not know the flight was as long as it was. But, we’re out here competing against another really good team, and you just want to continue to play the right way and just build the habits that we talk about.”
Getting back to those habits is exactly what Boston has done to start the new year, now halfway through their four-game road trip. Their strong defense, fueled by effort, communication, and connectivity, has sparked their offense, with the team shooting 50.6% from the field and 42.7% from beyond the arc.
Celtics have made a statement in these two games, showing the intentionality and focus on both ends of the floor that was lacking during their December lull.
“We had a good meeting before this trip,” said Kristaps Porzingis. “Looking in the mirror type of meeting, seeing where we can improve and what we can do better, because teams are obviously coming for us, and some of them are playing their best basketball against us. So, small adjustments we want to make and try to keep improving as a team.”
That reflection has brought back last season’s dominance. Priding themselves on defense, being the tougher, smarter, more physical team, no matter who’s in or out.
Now, they have a chance to make their biggest statement of the season against the 29-5 Oklahoma City Thunder, a team currently riding a 14-game win streak, with a 16-2 record at home, that many believe the Celtics could see in June.
“Just have an understanding of what we need to do to be at our best,” Mazzulla said. “Every game is a tough matchup, so the next one’s a good challenge. We’re in a good space as far as what we need to get better at on both ends of the floor, and we just have to continue to do that.”
Related
