Before the Celtics embarked on their season-long six-game road trip, Kristaps Porzingis was asked what a successful trip would look like.
“6-0, no?” he responded. “6-0, come back home, would be perfect.”
Well, more than halfway through the road trip, they are almost there.
With Wednesday night’s 132-102 win over the Phoenix Suns, the Celtics advanced to 4-0 on the road trip, with all four of those wins coming by at least 13 points. It also marked their seventh consecutive win, tying their season-long winning streak. Five of those seven wins have come by double-digits.
Wednesday night’s win was by far the most convincing.
Although Phoenix is three games under .500, they had been heating up as of late, looking to make a push into the Play-In. The Suns had won four in a row, headlined by wins over the Cleveland Cavaliers and Milwaukee Bucks, but it didn’t matter. With Jayson Tatum sidelined, the Celtics cruised to a 30-point victory. They never trailed.
Here are seven takeaways from the win.
Jayson Tatum sat (perhaps reluctantly)
Let’s start with some housekeeping before we get into the actual game.
It appears the sprained left ankle Jayson Tatum suffered in Monday night’s win over the Sacramento Kings won’t keep him sidelined long.
The 27-year-old went through some shooting and a workout at shootaround earlier in the day on Wednesday and, afterward, had his status upgraded from doubtful to questionable. Although he was later ruled out, he did some more shooting and went through an intense workout before the game, a clear indication that the injury suffered on Monday is minor.
It’s no surprise that Tatum tried to ramp up and play. In a league defined by load management, Tatum is the anti.
Since entering the league, Tatum has been available for 579 of 627 possible games (92.3%). He has been available for all 113 playoff games. In total, he has been active for 692 of 740 (93.5%), a somewhat crazy accomplishment in today’s NBA.
Since entering the league, only DeMar DeRozan has played more minutes than Tatum. He has logged over 1,000 more playoff minutes than any other non-Celtic during that span.
Knowing how much pride and responsibility Tatum feels to play in road arenas, it would not come as a surprise if he is back on the floor Saturday night in San Antonio.
The Suns don’t play defense
If you didn’t know that the Suns have the 26th-ranked defense in the league and are one of the worst defensive teams on the perimeter, it became apparent rather quickly.
In the first 4:20 of the game, the Celtics drained seven of their nine three-point attempts (77.8%). All five starters—Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis, and Al Horford—hit one.
By the end of the first quarter, the Celtics had racked up 42 points on 60.9% shooting from the field, including 10-of-17 (58.8%) from beyond the arc. Those 10 threes tied a franchise record for the most in an opening frame, a mark they also hit on opening night against the Knicks. It marked their first 40-point first quarter since November.
And they didn’t slow down.
The Celtics finished the night with 132 points, their most since the new year, on 50.6% shooting from the field, 42.3% from three, and 90.9% from the free-throw line. Their offensive rating was 133.8, as they’ve now won 24 straight (including playoffs) when shooting 50/40/90.
Six Celtics scored in double figures, with the entire starting five posting at least 15 points. Nine different Celtics hit a three, with six making at least two. The Celtics advanced to 13-0 this season when making at least 22 threes.
Speaking of defense, the Celtics’ defense bounced back after a slow start
Early on, it looked like this game would be a shootout. The Suns nearly matched Boston’s 42-point first quarter with 38 points of their own, the second-most the Celtics have allowed in an opening frame this season.
But after that, the Celtics clamped down. Phoenix scored just 16 points in the second quarter, 27 in the third, and 21 in the fourth.
The Suns hit 15 shots (scoring 38 points) on 62.5% shooting from the field and 50% from deep in the first quarter. Over the final three quarters, they managed just 21 made shots (64 points) on 33.3% shooting and 27.3% from three. During that stretch, they also had more turnovers (11) than made threes (9).
“I just liked our defensive approach. I thought the guys were able to take it to another level,” Mazzulla said after the game. I thought it was a shootout in the beginning of the game. We had some cross-match breakdowns. They had a few offensive rebounds. And then I thought we just really dialed it in.”
Payton Pritchard reached 1,000 points off the bench
Entering Wednesday night, Pritchard had scored in double figures in six straight games. That streak came to an end with a seven-point performance on 3-of-10 (30%) shooting from the field and 1-of-8 (12.5%) from three. However, he still reached another milestone in a season that will almost certainly culminate with a Sixth Man of the Year Award.
Pritchard passed the 1,000-point mark off the bench, becoming just the fourth Celtic in franchise history to score 1,000 points in a single season as a reserve, joining Kevin McHale (three times), Ricky Davis, and Malcolm Brogdon. For what it’s worth, Brogdon won the Award, McHale did one of those seasons and finished third in another, and Davis finished second.
Pritchard is the first reserve to surpass 1,000 points this season. No other reserve has even reached 900. The 27-year-old leads all reserves in points, threes, and plus-minus. He is third in assists and fifth in steals. Amongst reserve guards, he is second in rebounds.
The Oregon product is a massive -500 betting favorite to take home the John Havlicek Trophy, aiming to become the fourth Celtic to do so, joining Brogdon (2023), McHale (1984, 1985), and Bill Walton (1986).
Jaylen Brown looked much more like himself
After missing three consecutive games due to a bone bruise and posterior impingement in his right knee, Brown looked far from himself in Monday night’s win over the Kings.
He finished with 24 points, five assists, three rebounds, a steal, and just one turnover in 28 minutes. He also hit four three-pointers at a 44.4% clip, a promising sign as he works to regain his shooting touch with the playoffs looming.
After the game, Brown revealed that he’s on a minutes restriction and adjusting to the knee injury, something he’s never dealt with before.
“It’s new for me,” Brown said. I haven’t really had issues with my knees ever in my career, so I’m just trying to find a good routine to make sure I’m prepared and ready to go every night. But it’s definitely been a challenge mentally and stuff like that.”
It was a strong all-around performance from Brown, who shot 3-of-5 in the paint, powering through defenders, highlighted by a thunderous dunk in the third quarter. He also made his presence felt on the defensive end, defending Kevin Durant.
Of course, his health will remain a key storyline as he works through the injury, especially with him needing to play in seven of the final nine games to qualify for postseason awards. But Wednesday night’s performance was certainly a step in the right direction.
“I thought he was great,” said Mazzulla. “Whatever he has to do to put himself in the best chance to be at his best for us and to help us win, he does. For a couple of games, it was taking care of his knee, and now it’s doing what he needs to do, and I thought he was really efficient, 7-of-15 [FG], 4-of-9 [3PT], 6-of-6 from the line, but his defense was great. His presence was great for us.”
Kristaps Porzingis was just too big
Porzingis finished with 30 points, shooting 10-of-15 (66.7%) from the field, 4-of-5 (80%) from three, and 6-of-8 (75%) at the free throw line, notching his second 30-point game of the season. He also added eight rebounds, two assists, and two blocks to his stat line in one of his most dominant performance of the season.
Phoenix had no answer for his 7-foot-2 frame. When they switched defenders, he effortlessly posted them up and scored at will, shooting 60% from inside the arc and simply shooting over the smaller Suns defenders.
Since returning from illness, the Unicorn has averaged 24.4 points on 58.3% shooting from the field and 40.0% from three, along with 8.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.6 blocks over his last five games. During that stretch, the Celtics have outscored opponents by 12.4 points per game with him on the floor.
Wednesday night served as another reminder of just how unstoppable he can be when he’s on the floor.
Al Horford does Al Horford things
I’m always intrigued by anything that puts Al Horford’s longevity into perspective.
For instance, Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer coached Horford 11 years ago in Atlanta. Budenholzer’s first year with the Hawks was Horford’s seventh.
Now, in year 18 and just a few months away from his 39th birthday, Horford is showing no signs of slowing down. He continues to produce at a high level on both ends of the floor.
On Wednesday night, he finished with 16 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, two blocks, and a steal in just 26 minutes.
Seeing him playing at such a high level after all these years is remarkable. As the team’s unquestioned emotional leader, Horford is a quintessential Celtic, inspiring everyone in the organization—including head coach Joe Mazzulla, who is two years younger than him.
“The respect for Al, who just competes at a high level. He takes ownership of every matchup and every opportunity that he has,” Mazzulla said. “When you get to watch him play against other greats, to me, it’s a gift and a blessing to be able to watch that.”
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