Let’s start with this: Yes, the Celtics still have the NBA’s best record, sitting at 11-3, as they wrap up their four-game road trip with a 3-1 record. Yes, it is only November, and yes, the C's were without Derrick White and Al Horford on the second night of a back-to-back.
However, Monday night’s 121-118 overtime loss to the Charlotte Hornets is inexcusable for the Celtics. The C’s played with fire constantly throughout their four-game trip, and they finally got burned Monday night.
While some may want to point to the clock dilemma at the end of overtime, which, in fairness, did cause the Celtics valuable seconds in a one-point game, the Celtics should have never found themselves in that position in the first place.
Boston led by nine with two minutes to go in regulation before being held scoreless in the final two minutes, as Charlotte went on a 7-0 run to force overtime.
The C’s entered Monday night with a 5-2 record in clutch games this season, as closing games out has been kind of a strength of this team early in the season, but some old bad habits, paired with some questionable decision-making, resulted in an ugly ending for the Celtics.
Though they returned home with three wins, the Celtics didn't play their best on this road trip, and unlike the last two games, the Celtics couldn’t escape their flaws Monday night.
Here are three takeaways that outline what went wrong in Monday night’s overtime loss to Charlotte that snapped the Celtics’ NBA-best six-game win streak.
Another blown lead
Led by Jayson Tatum, who poured in 31 points in the first half (tying his career-high for a first half) on 10-of-15 (66.7%), and Payton Pritchard, who had 16 first-half points on 6-of-8 (75%) shooting in the first half, the Celtics built an 18-point second-quarter lead, a lead erased by the Hornets due to a sloppy second half from the Celtics.
Blown leads were an issue throughout the trip, as the Celtics blew a double-digit lead in each of the four games. The C’s blew a 17-point lead against Philadelphia, a 16-point lead to Toronto, a 10-point lead to Memphis, and an 18-point lead Monday night.
Blowing leads has been a chronic issue for the Celtics in years past and appears to be something they are still struggling with again.
It’s an issue the Celtics need to figure out quickly, as the team needs to find a way to stay focused for an entire 48 minutes.
Offensive rebounding
An easy way to let an inferior opponent hang around is to give them extra possessions, and that’s exactly what the Celtics did on Monday night.
The Celtics surrendered 17 offensive rebounds (tying their season-high), which resulted in 20 second-chance points for Charlotte. The Hornets had five offensive rebounds in the fourth quarter and overtime, two coming in the final two minutes of regulation, which both resulted in put-backs.
The Celtics have now allowed 31 offensive rebounds in their two games.
To go along with their 17 offensive rebounds allowed, the Celtics totaled 13 turnovers on the night, resulting in 15 points for the Hornets.
Giving teams extra possessions is a recipe for disaster, and this is an area the Celtics will need to clean up moving forward.
Missed free throws
Despite all the mishaps from the Celtics on Sunday night, this game was lost at the free throw line.
The C’s shot 18-of-28 (64.3%) from the charity strike on Monday night, marking their first game with 10 missed free throws since Game 5 of the 2022 NBA Finals against the Warriors.
With the Celtics up by two with just 10.1 seconds remaining in regulation, Jrue Holiday was fouled by LaMelo Ball and was sent to the line to shoot two free throws with a chance to ice the game. Holiday missed them both, and Ball took advantage of it, scoring an easy layup out of a timeout to tie the game up.
The free throw woes continued into overtime, as Tatum also had a costly miss at the free throw line.
Trailing by three, Tatum was fouled by Gordon Hayward on a three-point attempt, which sent him to the line with a chance to tie the game, and after knocking down the first two, Tatum missed the would-be game-tying free throw.
Entering Monday night, the Celtics hadn’t missed a clutch free throw all season, shooting a perfect 22-of-22.
In the end, the Celtics were their own worst enemy. They had control of their fate all game long and let it slip away.
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