C’s head into All-Star break on high note
Before Wednesday’s game against the Pistons — the final one before the All-Star break — Celtics interim coach Joe Mazzulla was asked what his message to his players would be going into the week off.
“It depends on how tonight’s game goes,” Mazzulla said.
“I have five answers,” he added. “I have five suggestions depending on the results of tonight.”
Safe to say, one of them was what he was hoping for.
Wednesday could have served as something of a trap game for the Celtics, less than 24 hours removed from an exhausting loss in Milwaukee and with flights to vacations ready to be boarded. But they approached it with the seriousness it required, even against the lowly Pistons. The returns of Marcus Smart and Jayson Tatum showed that, and the duo followed through by leading a thorough 127-109 victory at TD Garden as the C’s went into the break on a well-deserved high note.
Last year in this exact spot — the game before the All-Star break — the Celtics lost to the Pistons. They didn’t let a repeat happen.
“We always think about last year when we lost this exact same game, so it’s good to get that win going into the break and just get a little time to relax, recharge, and understand what the bigger picture is after that,” Derrick White said.
Tatum scored 38 points — including a career-high 24 in the third quarter — with nine rebounds and seven assists, and Smart returned from an 11-game absence to stuff the stat sheet with nine points, seven rebounds, six assists and six steals. Malcolm Brogdon, a night after logging 39 minutes, provided another big bench boost with 25 points.
The Celtics won seven of their last nine games and will head to Salt Lake City boasting an NBA-best 42-17 record.
“I think we’re in a strong spot,” Brogdon said. “I thought we finished the break the way we should have. We wanted to win that game yesterday in Milwaukee of course, but we played a really good game. But we came out tonight and took care of business and these last 10 games heading into the All-Star break we didn’t have any slippage, and that’s the key. Finishing strong, finishing with the best record, and more importantly finishing playing the type of basketball we want to play.”
To do so, they had to hold off a hungry Pistons team. The Celtics led by as many as 19 early in the second half and saw their advantage slip to five, but they had far too much firepower thanks to the returns of their reinforcements.
Tatum, who missed Tuesday’s loss to the Bucks due to an illness, was uncertain to play in the pre-break finale and the Celtics probably could have gotten away with giving him some extra rest before he heads to Salt Lake City for this weekend’s AllStar festivities. But not only did he suit up, he brought it in the third as the Celtics held off a Pistons surge.
Tatum — perhaps warming up for his appearance in Saturday night’s 3-point contest — shook off an 0-for-4 start from long range to go for 6-for-6 from downtown en route to his 24 points in the period. The Celtics star said he did some practice for the 3-point contest on Wednesday morning — complete with racks and a timer — and the results showed during that third quarter run.
“Just got some good looks and got into a rhythm,” Tatum said. “I’ve got the 3-point contest coming up so I’m trying to get myself ready for that. Because I’m trying to win. Flat out.”
The Celtics then ran away in the fourth as they built a 21-point lead as they made sure to close strong, evidenced by Blake Griffin’s hustle play as he dove for a loose ball out of bounds late in the fourth even though the C’s were comfortably in front.
“I think we’re just playing hard,” Griffin said of the way the Celtics have played going into the break. “Guys are making shots, but I think we’ve really made it a point to sit down defensively and get stops and make hustle plays and be there for each other, and I think the attention to detail is what Joe always talks about, and I think we’ve done that.”
The C’s welcomed the return of Smart, who gave them plenty of direction on offense as they shot 53.3 percent on 30 assists. But more than his play on both sides of the ball, he made a difference with his attitude.
“We missed his joy,” Mazzulla said. “He brought a level of joy to the game tonight.”
The Celtics enter the break feeling good about themselves, and Mazzulla wanted to celebrate what they’ve accomplished to date, but he doesn’t want them to get complacent. That was part of his message as they departed to their respective destinations. “I do think there is a comfort level so to speak, knowing that (the Celtics have the best record),” Mazzulla said.” But that was kind of my message to the guys (that) just, at the same time, you can’t be too comfortable because when we come back it picks right up. And we have a responsibility to all the work that we put in up to this point in the season to raise our level and to play even better than we have been. And so that’s not the ultimate goal, but it’s there and you have to acknowledge it and you have to embrace it.”