Everything you need to know about the Nuggets beating the Celtics 114-105 with BSJ insight and analysis
Box Score
HEADLINES
Celtics fall apart in fourth: Isaiah Thomas made a long-awaited (but brief) return to the Garden parquet on Monday night and his team came out with a win as the Nuggets dominated the fourth quarter on their way to a 115-105 victory. Nikola Jokic (21 points) led seven different Denver players in double figures as the visitors used timely efficient offense and lockdown defense in the fourth quarter to pull away with the win. The Celtics dropped just their second game over their last eight contests after failing to recover from an 11-0 Nuggets run at the start of the fourth quarter. Kyrie Irving overcame a slow shooting start to finish with a game-high 30 points but he got little help from others as Al Horford was the only Celtic to notch over 20 points while the hosts shot just 41 percent as a team.
Isaiah gets his tribute video: The point guard was honored at the first timeout of the game with a 90-second tribute video that was followed up with a standing ovation from the Garden crowd that lasted over a minute. Thomas played seven minutes for the Nuggets in the first half and went scoreless while dishing out two assists.
“You can’t even describe that feeling,” Irving said of the tribute. “My teammates felt that, and they weren’t even a part of that. It was big-time. I appreciate them for doing that, especially for not being able to be in a situation where I’m playing right now, this type of love is something that I wanted, that I needed, and I’m glad I was able to come back, and the love was just amazing.”
TURNING POINT
Stevens called a timeout with 1.1 seconds remaining in the third quarter to set up a play but Marcus Morris heaved a full-court pass out of bounds, giving the Nuggets possession under Boston’s respect. They took advantage of the extra chance with a backdoor dunk off a cut, kickstarting a 16-2 run that lasted into the fourth quarter against Boston’s bench. The Celtics were never able to recover in the final frame.
INJURY REPORT
Gordon Hayward missed the game after entering the NBA concussion protocol following a collision in Saturday’s win over the Hawks. He is doubtful for Wednesday’s matchup in Philadelphia but could rejoin the team in Charlotte ahead of Saturday’s game against the Hornets, according to Brad Stevens.
TWO UP
Kyrie Irving:
The All-Star shook off an early poor shooting night and delivered his fourth 30-point game over his last five contests. He is averaging 27.8 points, 7.0 rebounds and 8.2 assists over his last five games.
Al Horford:
The big man showed no signs of a sore knee with his seventh 20+ point game of the season. He also was red-hot from 3-point range, knocking down a team-high four of his eight attempts.
TWO DOWN
Brad Stevens:
A foolish timeout call that led to two extra points for the Nuggets at the end of the third quarter shifted the momentum. Plus, some costly fourth-quarter lineup management (16-2 run against a bench unit without getting Irving back into the game) was too much for Boston to overcome in this one.
Jaylen Brown:
A rare dud for him after a strong string of games. His defense was lacking in a big way in this one as he was beaten multiple times on backdoor cuts by the Nuggets. Also had a team-high three turnovers despite playing just 19 minutes.
TOP PLAY
TWO TAKES B-ROBB WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER
A discouraging step backward:
After breaking through in recent weeks and overcoming some tough situations, this team got an exposed against a strong squad on Monday night in the fourth quarter. They couldn’t get stops when they needed to, they played too much hero ball during crucial stretches and the poise and cohesion that the Nuggets showcased down the stretch was not present. We’ve seen games like this all year but now that we are past the 70-game mark of the season, it’s fair to wonder whether this is simply what this team. It’s hard to imagine them flipping a switch in the postseason when they have been trying to do it for weeks now. This loss was a reminder of how far they have to go on that front.
Kyrie Irving is going to have to play 40-plus minutes in the postseason so it might be time to start resting him too:
Gordon Hayward’s absence didn’t help on this front, but the Celtics offense continues to fall apart in stretches without Irving on the floor, as was the case in this fourth quarter. Stevens has been all about giving guys more rest, even in playoff games, in order to maximize their usefulness at the end of games but the Celtics second unit has shown time and time again that they can’t afford to play without their star for long stretches. With the likelihood rising that the C’s are going to be stuck in the four/five slot (especially if they lose against the Sixers on Wednesday night), it might be time to get him a few games off ahead of a daunting postseason grind. Boston’s best chance at going deep is going to be riding Irving as much as possible to avoid disaster striking when he hits the bench.
