In the third quarter of the Celtics’ 110-97 loss to the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night, Scottie Barnes fought over a screen and reset his defensive position against Jayson Tatum, who was looking to make a dribble move.
His tenacious defense forced Tatum to reset, retreating towards the halfcourt line. As Tatum walked back, Barnes clapped his hands in Tatum’s face and followed him step by step. Luke Kornet then came up and screened Barnes, allowing Tatum to blow by him and the rest of the Raptors, and rise up for a thunderous one-handed dunk. Instead, he was rejected by the rim.
It was the perfect microcosm of what’s been a bizarre and frustrating stretch for the Celtics.
The Raptors, entering the game with only nine wins and having won just two of their last 18, were eager for the challenge and came out ready to face the reigning champions. Meanwhile, Boston coasted through the game, showing lackluster defense, a sluggish offense, and continued uninspired play—unable to get out of their own way.
“We played with no spirit. No personality,” Kristaps Porzingis said after the game. “Just a weak performance from us, honestly.”
Outside of Porzingis (18 points, eight rebounds, three assists, two blocks), whose hot shooting kept the Celtics afloat, and Payton Pritchard, who was the only consistent Celtic on the night—finishing with a team-high 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting (63.6%), four assists, two offensive rebounds, and a steal, finishing a +6 in a 13-point loss—there wasn’t much good to take away from what was the worst loss of the season for Boston.
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined for just 26 points on 9-of-31 (29%) shooting, their lowest total when playing at least 60 minutes together since November 2021. Derrick White’s struggles continued as he finished 2-of-9 (22.2%) from the field and 1-of-7 (14.3%) from deep. White is now shooting 8-of-36 (22.2%) and 3-of-29 (10.3%) from three in his last four games. His -29 on Wednesday night matched his career-worst.
“He is just a guy that is going to continue to play. He’s been great for us the entire year,” Joe Mazzulla said on White after the game. “He’s just got to continue to play. Continue to execute. Continue to believe in himself. I believe in him. We love him. He’s going through a little slump, but he works hard. He’ll bounce back from it.”
The loss, fueled by the same inconsistency that’s plagued them for over a month, dropped the Celtics to 9-8 over their last 17 games, 7-7 in their last 14, and 1-3 in their last four.
Facing one of the league’s worst defenses, the Celtics mustered only 97 points, shooting a miserable 39.6% from the field, including 44.4% from inside the arc and 34.8% from three. Their stagnant offense continued to hold them back.
Defensively, a lack of focus, intensity, and effort allowed the Raptors to score 60 points in the paint on 63.8% shooting. While Boston’s poor shot selection and missed layups—20-of-39 inside the paint—helped Toronto get out in transition, where they outscored the Celtics 18-5 on fastbreak points.
“Not so much effort, it was attention to detail,” Mazzulla said. “We just didn’t do a great job protecting the rim with our shift activity.”
As has often been the case over this skid, the Celtics faltered in the fourth quarter, getting outscored 22-15—those 15 points marking their second-lowest total in any quarter this season. Tatum didn’t attempt a single shot in the final frame. The starting unit also struggled again, digging themselves into an early 10-point hole and ultimately being outscored by 12 points overall.
“Obviously, we’re not playing our best basketball,” Mazzulla said postgame. “You can’t expect anything to be easy, and you can’t have an expectation that it’s always supposed to go your way because it’s not. We just have to find a way to enjoy the challenge but make sure we do it together.”
It’s been the same story for over a month now: the offense and defense aren’t complementing each other. Unlike last season, when the offense struggles to score, the defense hasn’t been consistent enough to bail them out. At other times, poor shooting efficiency puts added pressure on the defense. Throw in a starting five that’s out of sync and continued issues executing in the fourth quarter, and it’s a recipe for frustration.
“We’re going through some s— right now,” Tatum said. “It’s tough. But we said it after the game – we’ve got to go through it together, as best as we can, stick together, trust in one another like we always have, and just show your true character.”
The Celtics have earned the benefit of the doubt. A team that won 64 games, outscored opponents by +930 points (the fifth-best mark in league history), and breezed through the NBA Finals with a 16-3 postseason record doesn’t just forget how to play basketball. However, there needs to be a sense of urgency to hone in on the details that made them so special.
“It’s not the end of the world. Every team has ups and downs. It just feels like s— right now,” Porzingis said. “If we were panicking, I wouldn’t tell you. But we are not. But we are in a bad moment right now, for sure. We have to be realistic and look in the mirror.”
Down stretches are a natural part of the game. Last year’s team earned the “historically dominant” label for a reason—what they accomplished is rare. This year’s squad is carving its own path. While it’s clear they need some soul-searching to reignite their spark, there’s no need to panic just yet.
That said, what started as a rut is starting to build into something more. A loss to the lottery-bound Raptors, in that fashion, should serve as a wake-up call, prompting the Celtics to back up their words with actions and put an end to this stretch before it spirals even further.
“We have high personality, high character people,” said Porzingis. “Nobody is pointing fingers. We know we’ll get past this. But we have to start playing better.”
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