BSJ Daily Briefing 12.26.17: Leftover thoughts from an ugly Celtics loss on Christmas

Hope you and your family had an enjoyable holiday yesterday. The Celtics ended theirs on a bit of a sour note after a disappointing loss to the Wizards at the Garden. A few scattered thoughts after re-watching the fourth quarter of that defeat.

• Wizards coach Scott Brooks got smart by going small. Kelly Oubre Jr. wasn't good/consistent enough last year to be counted on during crunch time. That's changed in his third season and made the Wizards crunch time lineup (Wall/Beal/Oubre/Porter Jr/Morris) a versatile defensive group.


• The communication issues on defense for the Celtics continue to crop up at bad times. Take a look at this play from the final two minutes of the fourth quarter. I'm not 100 percent sure who was at fault here (Smart/Horford/Tatum are all candidates) but it left Tatum with having to guard two guys and he picked the wrong one to stick with. That's inexcusable stuff during crunch time.

• Jaylen Brown was hobbling pretty good in the locker room after taking a knee to the back of his leg in the final minute of the loss. I'd be surprised if he suits up against the Hornets.


• Marcus Morris looked rusty in his return (which is to be expected after a eight-game absence). The timing wasn't ideal for the Celtics during a tough matchup against the Wizards.

Gordon Hayward addresses the @celtics crowd for #NBAXmas! pic.twitter.com/LL6rKoyQmm

— NBA (@NBA) December 25, 2017