The Celtics cruised past the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday night, advancing to 7-0 at home this season with their 113-103 win, a game in which they never trailed.
Boston was without Jrue Holiday (ankle sprain) and Kristaps Porzingis (calf strain), leading to Joe Mazzulla getting creative with his starting rotation, calling on Dalano Banton to get the start, marking just the fourth start of his career, a move that was likely to allow the usual bench pieces to maintain the continuity they have been building.
Banton finished the night with eight points on 3-of-5 (60%) shooting, five boards, and an assist.
While Banton didn’t stuff the stat sheet, he did exactly what Mazzulla and the Celtics needed, contributing on the defensive end and making his layups.
The Celtics didn’t have their best shooting night in the win, especially from deep, as they finished the night shooting 42-of-95 (44.2%) from the field and a putrid 13-of-47 (27.7%) from three.
Entering Sunday night, the Celtics were 0-2 when shooting under 30% from three-point range.
In the wake of their rough shooting night, it was Boston's strong rebounding that gave them a significant edge.
The Celtics snagged a season-high 58 rebounds on the night, as they outrebounded Atlanta 58-43. Eighteen of Boston’s 58 rebounds were offensive, a new season-high which resulted in 17 second-chance points.
The Celtics entered Sunday night having been outrebounded 57-36 on the offensive glass over their last four games, they defeated Atlanta in that department Sunday night 18-11.
It was Jayson Tatum, who finished with 34 points on 11-of-25 (44.0%) shooting, and Jaylen Brown, who finished with 21 points on 9-of-19 (47.4%) shooting that led the way for the Celtics.
Derrick White also notched his first double-double of the season, finishing with 15 points, 11 assists, and a game-high +29 plus-minus.
Here are three takeaways as the Celtics get back in the win column.
Neemias Queta shines
There was a lot of buzz surrounding Queta following his standout performance in the preseason. However, a foot injury caused the Portugal native to miss the first couple of weeks of the season.
Entering Sunday night, the 24-year-old had appeared in just one game for the Celtics this season, registering five minutes against the Memphis Grizzlies. But with Porzingis sidelined, Queta got an opportunity, and he made the most of it.
Queta, who is on a two-way deal with the Celtics, finished the night with seven points, 10 boards (six offensive), and a steal in just over 15 minutes of play. Queta’s 10 rebounds was second-most on the team, behind just Al Horford (15).
The 7-foot big man was active around the rim all night long on both ends of the floor.
When speaking pregame, Mazzulla revealed that Porzingis will have his calf reevaluated in “about a week or so,” which will likely lead to more opportunity for Queta as the former second-round pick looks to earn some minutes in Boston’s rotation.
Impressive night defensively
The Hawks entered Sunday night’s game having totaled 435 points in their last three games.
Quick math, that’s a ridiculous 145 points per game.
Though their defense may be severely uninspiring, the Hawks can score points – A lot of points.
Despite being without two key pieces of their defense in Holiday and Porzingis, the Celtics held the high-flying Hawks’ offense to just 103 points. Atlanta’s 103 points are their fewest in any game this season and are well below their 124.9 per game average.
Hawks’ head coach Quin Snyder noted pregame that the Celtics are “elite” defensively with their size and versatility, and that’s how the Celtics got the best of the Hawks on Sunday night.
Boston also did a great job with their physicality from the start, which led to Trae Young picking up a technical foul less than five minutes into the game.
The Celtics forced 15 turnovers on the night, tied for the third-most they have forced in a game this season. Those 15 turnovers resulted in 26 points for Boston.
Dejounte Murray, who is averaging 20.9 points per game this season, was held to just six points on 2-of-13 (15.4%) shooting. Murray’s 15.4% field goal percentage is the worst he has shot as a member of the Hawks, and his worst shooting percentage in a game since February 6, 2020.
Another rough third quarter
The Celtics entered Sunday night 29th in third quarter offense, and they struggled in that department yet again on Sunday night.
After building a 20-point third quarter lead at the 7:46 mark of the third quarter, Atlanta cut the lead to just six at the 3:44 mark.
The Hawks outscored the Celtics 29-21 in the third quarter, as the Celtics shot a 7-of-19 (36.8%) from the floor and a putrid 2-of-10 (20%) from beyond the arc. Tatum was held scoreless.
The Celtics were outscored 50-44 in the second half.
It’s been a struggle for years now, a struggle the Celtics need to get to the bottom of if they are going to reach their ultimate goal.
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