Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum combined for 83 points on 61 shots in Friday’s loss to Cleveland, but Brown thought they should have shot even more considering the circumstances, writes Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. The Celtics were missing Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday due to injuries, limiting their options on offense. Still, the Cavaliers rarely threw double teams at Brown or Tatum.
“They don’t want to help,” Brown said. “They were trying to take away our spacing and our shooting, so they were just staying home on us instead of trying to make us make the reads and pass. So that means we’ve got to dominate every time down the floor. I feel like I let them off the hook maybe a few times where I could have used some shot fakes, some possessions I definitely would have back. But for the most part, we were aggressive, and that was key for us.
“But different games, we’ll see different game plans each and every night. Sometimes they blitz, sometimes they (double team), sometimes they do different things. When I had the ball or when Jayson had the ball tonight, they for the most part stayed home. We’ve got to make them pay.”
Tatum’s 37 shots were five more than his previous high for a regulation game. Himmelsbach speculates that so much shooting may have tired out Tatum, who missed all four of his three-point attempts in the second half.
There’s more from Boston:
- The Cavs targeted Sam Hauser on defense, frequently forcing him to try to stay in front of Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, Himmelsbach adds. Cleveland was 12-of-26 during the game with Hauser as the primary defender, and coach Joe Mazzulla was happy with how he responded to the challenge. “(Hauser) has been a great defender in the league for the last two or three years and earned a reputation for that,” Mazzulla said, “and so the confidence comes from having him in the game, being able to defend.”
- Porzingis and Holiday are both listed as doubtful for Sunday afternoon’s game against Denver, according to Brian Robb of MassLive. Porzingis is sidelined with a non-COVID illness, while Holiday is dealing with a mallet finger injury on his right hand that he suffered in Wednesday’s game. Both players are considered day-to-day. Brown, who sat out Wednesday due to thigh soreness, is questionable due to pain in his right knee. Neemias Queta, Xavier Tillman and Jordan Walsh all practiced today with the Maine Celtics in anticipation of playing on Sunday, Robb adds.
- One of the few disappointments for the Celtics in the past two years is the failure of their developmental prospects to earn rotation minutes, Robb states in a mailbag column. He notes that as the roster gets more expensive, Walsh, Drew Peterson, Baylor Scheierman and JD Davison will eventually have to be replaced if they can’t make greater contributions.
As a Celtics fan, I still think they’re up there with anyone if they’re healthy.
But. They ain’t. KP and Holliday have been missing games all year
As far as the young guys go. Peterson plays the game right. Schierman, it’s too soon to tell. Walsh just doesn’t have the offensive game to be a rotation player and Davison? Who cares.
Celtics team to beat ……
Davey J has the Warriors besting them already …
Ain’t that right Fanatic ……
Celtics vs Knicks will be epic ….
Hauser was abused/switched on the defensive end …….. the CAVS just spammed it the whole game.
This loss was on Mazzulla.
Celtics were more up for Knicks than Cavs. Not a full team. No big deal. But I saw a Cavs team that wants the Celtics. I have to say I think home field gives Cavs the edge. Celtics better not be looking past Knicks.
Maybe the Celtics would have more success if Brown and Tatum took fewer shots and allowed their teammates to shoot. Pritchard took 4 shots! Hauser took 7 shots in over 30 minutes. It is ridiculous for 2 guys to take 61 shots, and the team loses. This team will lose to good teams unless they get more team oriented. One reason the reserves and the young guys don’t develop is the lack of opportunity to play. It is obvious the coach has no confidence in them. And it is also obvious that the starters have no desire to include them. Many games this year the most effective unit is Tatum, Pritchard, Kornett, Hauser, and Horford or White. Check the =/-
“and it is also obvious that the starters have no desire to include them. ”
Since they only play in garbage time, how is that obvious?
Pritchard, Hauser, Kornett don’t play just in garbage time. Are you watching the Denver game? See the difference?
Yeah. I know. Are you being serious? He wrote “the !the reason the young guys don’t develop is the lack of opportunity to play”
I was talking about the young guys. Not Pritchard. Not Hauser. Not Kornett. I’m aware that Pritchard, Hauser and Kornet don’t just play in garbage time
Read slower if you need to.
He sure schooled you by letting you know Pritchard and Hauser don’t just play garbage time. Looks like he’s a true basketball genius.
If you read a little slower, you will see that I said he doesn’t have confidence in reserves and young players. That includes Pritchard, Hauser and Kornett. When Pritchard and Hauser take only 11 shots between them. It’s pretty obvious the starters aren’t passing the ball to them.
Gonna be interesting. Celts only scored 18 points in each of the 4th quarters in our last two losses! 18? And just 22 in the 4th qtr in the win against Toronto. Yet Jaylen Brown thinks he & Jason Tatum should take more shots, more than the 61 shots the two of them took against Cleveland? And D White, Hauser & Pritchard, our best three point % shooters, only took a total of 3 shots in the 4th quarter loss against the Cavs? Something’s totally messed up on offense while we can’t seem to defend as well. Donovan Mitchell averaging 30+ points against us? Come on Coach Joe, let’s play better team ball. Go Celtics!
That’s the problem with Joe, his plays are focused on Tatum and Brown. 55% of their plays are shooting 3’s. You live by the 3… You die by the 3.