Past iterations of the Celtics could afford to take nights off and still sneak away with wins. When you have a core of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, and Al Horford, there were nights when talent alone was enough, even if the effort wasn’t there for the full 48 minutes.
This team does not have that luxury — not even against a Utah team that walked into TD Garden on Monday night after being run off the floor in Charlotte the night before, losing by 26, and riding a three-game skid.
"That's the tell of the tale, was that our first half was great. And I think the third quarter, they got the best of us, and they played harder than us,” head coach Joe Mazzulla said following the 105-103 loss. “It was a combination of just transition, offensive rebounds, and then some of their dribble-drive stuff, not being able to defend without fouling. You have to be able to put a full game together. The first half was good. The third quarter cost us. And when it's a close game like that, it's anybody's game."
That was a telling quote from Mazzulla. He tends to avoid publicly calling out his players, but the message got through. The players owned it. They got outworked. And this team doesn’t have the margin for that anymore — not with the roster they have, not with the way they need to play.
“In moments, it just felt like they were the harder-playing team,” said Jaylen Brown. “I guess it’s a part of our learning curve, I guess. But, you know, teams shouldn’t just—especially a team coming off a back-to-back—shouldn’t be a harder-playing team than us. I got to lead the way on both ends of the ball, so I guess I got to be better in that regard as well.”
“Our effort just wasn’t acceptable,” added Derrick White. “Especially in that third quarter.”
Playing a full 48 minutes has been a recurring issue for this team this season, and it’s been undeniable in their five losses. A 42-point fourth quarter in the season opener against the 76ers. A 42-point second quarter against the Knicks. 36- and 34-point quarters allowed against Detroit. And Houston — well, that was a different circumstance, but they still gave up 37 in the first quarter. Against Utah, as White pointed out, it was a 38-point third quarter — coming after the Celtics had allowed just 36 points in the first half.
“They got the best of us,” Mazzulla said. “They just played better. They played harder and better than we did during that quarter.”
Of course, the tough shooting nights don’t help. The Celtics shot 37-of-89 (41.6%) from the field and 11-of-51 (21.6%) from three on Monday night against Utah. In their five losses, they are shooting 42.0% from the field and 29.1% from three — well below the league averages of 46.9% and 35.8%.
They were also outrebounded 55-36 (15-10 on the offensive glass) on Monday, dropping to 0-4 when outrebounded by their opponent. In their losses, they’ve been outrebounded 256-189 (-67), including 77-54 (-23) on the offensive glass. Those 77 offensive rebounds have turned into 102 second-chance points. With the roster as it is — and without Tatum, Horford, Porzingis, and Luke Kornet — rebounding isn’t going to be a strong suit. But it can’t be that drastic.
“We're never going to be top five [in rebounding], but we have to be better,” Mazzulla said. “It's a combination of, again, there are ones that we have to get, and then we have to be able to compensate in other areas to be better at that. Whether it's our shot making, whether it's our turnovers, whether it's our offensive rebounds, whether it's us not turning over, we're doing a good job on not turning it over in there. So we just have to fight to be better in that.”
This roster has its deficiencies, and they have to compensate for them in different ways. Effort is a non-negotiable in that department, and as patient as you can be with a new team finding its way, they can’t get a pass for lapses like Monday night.
“We’ve just got to figure out a way to play for 48 minutes,” said White. “It’s that sim— It’s not simple. But that’s what we have to do.”
The margin for error for this team is razor-thin. It gets even smaller when effort isn’t there. That needs to be a core part of their DNA, or there will be more results like Monday night.
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