Entering Tuesday night’s matchup with the Bulls, the Celtics faced a steep challenge in their quest to advance to the Knockout stage of the NBA’s In-Season Tournament.
Boston had a few ways to sneak into the next round.
The most likely path was for Boston to defeat Chicago by at least 23 points, and Toronto to keep the game close in a losing effort against Brooklyn.
Despite the improbable odds, the Celtics secured what they needed, with a dominating 27-point win over the Bulls, and a 115-103 Nets victory over the Raptors. The Celtics will now take on the Indiana Pacers on the road Monday in a single-game elimination quarterfinals matchup, with the winner punching a ticket to Las Vegas to take on the winner of the New York Knicks and Milwaukee Bucks quarterfinal matchup.
With the win on Tuesday night, the Celtics remained perfect at home on the season, as they advanced to 8-0. Six of Boston’s eight wins at home have been by double-digits.
The Celtics have the league’s top offensive rating at home (125.4) and fourth-best defensive rating at home (103.2). Boston has an average margin of victory of 19.0 points per game at TD Garden this season.
Jaylen Brown was excellent once again, leading the way for the Celtics with 30 points on 12-of-23 (52.2%) shooting, six assists, and eight rebounds.
The Celtics also got great games from Derrick White and Jrue Holiday, who returned to the lineup after missing the last two games with a sprained ankle. The lethal guard duo combined for 28 points on 10-of-15 (66.6%) shooting, 16 assists, 10 rebounds, and three steals.
Boston led by as many as 35 and held the lead for all but 1:16 of game action.
Here are three takeaways as the Celtics advance to 14-4 on the season with their 124-97 win over the Bulls Tuesday night.
Offense sets new season-highs
The Celtics’ offense was absolutely humming on Tuesday night.
The C’s finished the night shooting 47-of-90 (52.2%) from the field and 21-of-49 (42.9%) from deep. Boston’s 21 three-point makes are a new season-high and are more than they have made in their last two games combined (20).
Entering Tuesday night, the Bulls surrendered the second-most threes per game in the league, a weakness the Celtics took advantage of.
The Celtics also set a new season-high in assists, racking up 36. Dating back to last season, Boston is now 19-2 when recording 30+ assists.
Boston has ranked near the bottom of the league in assists and total passes all season, but the ball was flying around nicely on Tuesday night - Much to the credit of their cutting (Brown in particular) and off-ball movement.
This isn’t always going to be the case. Some nights the Celtics will rely on hunting mismatches, but it’s a beautiful thing to watch when the ball is moving freely like it was Tuesday night.
Another fast start
Starting fast has been a common theme for the 2023-24 Celtics, and Tuesday night was no different.
The Celtics outscored the Bulls 31-20 in the first quarter, as they built a lead they never surrendered.
Boston finished the opening frame shooting 11-of-21 (52.4%) from the floor and 8-of-16 (50%) from deep. Nine of their 11 first quarter makes were assisted.
Defensively, Boston held the Bulls to just 20 points on 8-of-26 (30.8%) shooting while racking up three blocks.
On the season, the Celtics have the NBA’s top offensive rating (125.1), second-best defensive rating (99.6), and the best net rating (25.5).
The Celtics are averaging 31.3 points per game in the first quarter (third-most), while opponents are averaging just 24.9 (third-fewest). On average, the Celtics are outscoring opponents by 6.4 points in the first quarter.
The In-Season Tournament is fun
It’s had mixed reviews, but Tuesday night was a big win for the NBA and its inaugural In-Season Tournament.
It may be confusing and feature some unaesthetic courts, but the chaos that ensued because of all the In-Season Tournament scenarios made for a fun night on a random November Tuesday on the NBA calendar.
If not for the In-Season Tournament, Tuesday night would have been an uninteresting blowout.
It goes beyond just the Celtics angle. The games around the league have been competitive, intense, and an entertaining product – And we still haven’t reached the knockout stage yet.
The goal of the tournament was to enhance engagement early in the season, and it's worked. People are tuning in and talking about the In-Season Tournament. It’s served its purpose and then some.
Kudos to you, Adam Silver.
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