#1 – Jayson Tatum education Bilal Coulibaly
Washington has some rising stars amongst its core, and one in all them is Bilal Coulibaly. The French participant is gaining recognition as an ideal defensive wing, making his matchup with Jayson Tatum a superb alternative to judge him.
One main distinction between the 2 gamers is their bodily construct. Jayson Tatum has continued to bulk up, whereas the younger sophomore stays on the leaner facet. In consequence, it’s no shock that Tatum exploited this through the use of post-ups to attain in opposition to him.
However focusing solely on Jayson Tatum’s physicality would overlook his distinctive capability to govern defenses. I wrote about his passing final week, however his enhancements lengthen past that. His use of screens has considerably improved, as proven on this play:
Younger gamers like Coulibaly usually wrestle to navigate screens, and Tatum capitalized on his inexperience. Nonetheless, it is going to be fascinating to see how a promising defensive wing like Coulibaly develops over the season. Few gamers possess the mobility, dimension, and size to match up with Tatum, however maybe the French prince will someday grow to be one in all them.
#2 – However he made the Celtics pay for leaving him alone
Talking of Bilal Coulibaly, the Celtics determined to depart him open at first of the sport. As common, they aimed to establish a weaker shooter among the many opponents, utilizing this technique to maintain Kristaps Porzingis near the rim.
Nevertheless, the Wizards countered by feeding Coulibaly, the participant the Celtics had chosen to disregard on the perimeter. Sometimes, the Celtics goal non-ball-handlers to keep away from conditions the place Porzingis is compelled to protect the ball.
To proceed exploiting this matchup, the Wizards used Coulibaly as a screener, aiming to tug Porzingis away from the rim and put him in movement.
After a couple of minutes, the Celtics reassigned Porzingis to protect Alexandre Sarr (one other French participant!). The rookie is a much less harmful shooter than Coulibaly and fewer cell, making it simpler for KP (or Luke Kornet) to stick with him.
#3 – Luke Kornet’s passing
Luke Kornet’s passing has been one of many season’s nice surprises. Past the spotlight reels, he’s proven purposeful playmaking capability within the quick roll and high-post actions. For instance, final evening within the fourth quarter, Joe Mazzulla’s teaching employees ran the identical play twice with Kornet because the quater-back.
The play started with Derrick White passing to Kornet within the excessive publish. Concurrently, Sam Hauser set a display screen for Jayson Tatum, permitting him to chop to the rim. On the primary try, the Wizards had been caught off guard by Tatum’s lower, and Kornet delivered an alley-oop.
On the second try, the Wizards adjusted to guard the rim in opposition to Tatum, however this left Hauser open past the arc. Kornet made the proper learn once more, delivering an ideal go and showcasing the employees’s good play-calling.
#4 – Celtics dominating the offensive glass
The Celtics shot poorly on the rim (58%), and their offensive score for the sport was beneath their common customary (109 factors per 100 possessions). Nevertheless, an abundance of misses created loads of second-chance alternatives because of aggressive rebounding.
As common, Luke Kornet and Payton Pritchard led the cost. Collectively, they grabbed 9 offensive rebounds. General, the Celtics collected an offensive rebound on 41% of their half-court misses, compensating for his or her lack of scoring effectivity.
#5 – Celtics working quick off dwell defensive rebounds
Talking of rebounds and scoring effectivity, the Celtics used their tempo to outrun the Wizards after defensive stops. One-third of their defensive rebounds led to transition alternatives, the place they scored 1.66 factors per possession.
That is one other instance of how a staff can offset poor taking pictures by taking part in the numbers sport. By dominating either side of the glass and creating transition probabilities, the Celtics generated straightforward scoring alternatives, even when their common sport plan faltered.
#6 – Bench crew making the distinction
Because the season progresses, the Celtics’ bench continues to make a major affect. Lineups that includes Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser, and Luke Kornet are persistently constructive on each ends of the ground. Final evening, Pritchard posted a +17 internet score, whereas Hauser and Kornet registered +27 and +20, respectively. Their excessive basketball IQ and flexibility make them straightforward to combine alongside the Jays and the starters.
Since final season, we’ve seen extra Spain pick-and-roll actions for these bench gamers. Each Hauser and Pritchard can display screen and shoot, with Pritchard additionally enhancing as a passer in movement. This mix of two elite shooters and a talented massive man makes this unit one of many league’s most underrated.
#7 – KP’s good stretch earlier than exiting
Kristaps Porzingis performed exceptionally properly in his 11 minutes in opposition to his former staff, scoring 11 factors and doling out 2 assists. Throughout this stretch, the Celtics showcased quite a lot of actions designed for him:
Decide-and-rolls to create post-up mismatches,
Decide-and-pops to punish drop protection,
Pindowns to make the most of his verticality.
Nevertheless, Porzingis left the sport after 11 minutes and didn’t return. Whereas it didn’t appear critical, defending the massive man is a precedence, because the Celtics will want him wholesome for the lengthy haul.
#8 – No free throws for the Wizards
A key energy of the Celtics’ protection final season was limiting opponents’ free-throw makes an attempt. Final evening, though the Wizards aren’t an elite offense, Boston excelled at defending the paint and avoiding fouls.
Per Cleansing the Glass, the Wizards posted their lowest free-throw fee of the season in opposition to the Celtics, a testomony to Boston’s disciplined protection. The Wizards’ offensive score of 96 factors per 100 possessions additional illustrates the Celtics’ defensive dominance.
#9 – 18 turnovers for 26 assists
Regardless of committing 18 turnovers, together with 13 within the second half, the Celtics managed to carry up defensively. They recorded 26 assists however usually struggled with sloppy execution.
Even so, Boston’s effort in transition protection minimized the Wizards’ factors off turnovers, highlighting Washington’s lack of offensive expertise.
#10 – Solely 2 minutes of rubbish time
Though this sport felt like a simple win, Joe Mazzulla and his employees caught with the common rotation till late within the fourth quarter. With a lighter schedule through the ultimate week of the In-Season Match, it’s clear they needed to maintain everybody sharp.
