Five takeaways from the Celtics' dominant win over the Raptors

A mix of observations and analysis after watching the Celtics' dominant the Raptors for their fourth straight win on Christmas afternoon.

1. The Jaylen Brown All-Star case is gaining steam: We’ve been examining the third-year forward’s All-Star case for a few weeks here at BSJ, but a sensational performance on a national stage should do wonders for Brown’s candidacy. His efficient 30-point performance on just 13 shots was filled with impressive outside shooting (4-of-4 from 3-point range), superb shotmaking in the midrange and strong finishes at the rim that concluded with makes or free throws.

He’s now shooting over 51 percent from the field despite taking over 14 shot attempts per game, and that’s just tremendous efficiency given his size. He’s matching his career-high with 39 percent shooting from 3-point range with increased volume while also shooting a vastly improved 75 percent from the charity stripe. With another distributor back on the floor with him in Gordon Hayward on Christmas, he looked lethal against a shorthanded Raptors defense. Outside shooting was always looking like the final piece for Brown as he struggled through an inconsistent 2018-19 season, but renewed confidence and more opportunity has shown that his strong production in that area two seasons ago was no fluke. If the C’s keep rolling as a team for the next month, it’s going to be hard to keep Brown out of the mix as a third All-Star possibility.

2. Enes Kanter is rebounding at an absurd rate: The big man got the green light to travel to Canada at the last minute and was one of the best weapons on the floor for Boston while piling up 12 points and 11 rebounds in just 18 minutes. Incredibly, Kanter is now leading the Celtics in rebounds per game (7.5) despite averaging just over 18 minutes per contest.

Against a Raptors team without Marc Gasol, Kanter bullied Toronto’s frontline for rebounding position, drawing multiple loose ball fouls while piling up easy finishes against their zone (despite missing some easy bunnies) and undersized bigs like Chris Boucher. Kanter has been on an absolute roll on the glass during Boston’s four-game winning streak though, grabbing over 40 percent of all available rebounds while he’s on the floor, posting an absurd 23.3 rebounds per 36 minutes. It’s a massive weapon for the Celtics on the offensive end especially when Brad Stevens spreads the defense out with shooters, allowing him to set up shop.

As we wrote last month, good things continue to happen when Kanter is on the floor and the injury to Rob Williams has actually been a net positive for the C’s due to the increased playing time for Kanter. He’s rebounding better than anyone in the league right now, giving the C’s a dimension they haven’t had in years.

3. Romeo Langford keeps making a positive impact: It was a quiet afternoon for the No. 14 overall pick in Toronto in terms of production (2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal in 20 minutes). However, the rookie has quickly gone from an afterthought in the rotation to a trusted piece for Stevens as seen by his playing time (tied for Brad Wanamaker with most off the bench). Langford clearly has a lot to learn, but he’s giving the Celtics a nice athletic option with length at the wing right now. He’s been solid with his defense and is a more dynamic scoring option than Javonte Green or Semi Ojeleye right now, making him an appealing option against a small team like the Raptors. The Celtics aren’t asking him to do much right now when he’s out there, but he’s excelling at doing some of the little things (boxing out, hustle plays) that is earning him more run from Stevens. His opportunities may go down once Marcus Smart returns but I wouldn’t expect him to spend much time with the Red Claws in the coming months. He’s shown enough already where he should be useful to Stevens for a variety of matchups. His plus-39 mark over the past four games is indicative of that.

4. Boston’s offense is looking lethal with Gordon Hayward back: The Celtics had to like what they saw from Hayward on Christmas after a surprise week-long absence due to a sore foot. A third cortisone shot earlier this week appeared to do the trick with his lingering nerve pain as he posted 14 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists in 26 minutes. The swingman helped unlock Brown’s big afternoon with several nice kick-off passes for 3 and gives the C’s another lethal perimeter shooter that helped make the Raptors zone defenses ineffective. With him in the starting five, the C’s offense continues to outscore opponents by over 27 points per 100 possessions, and with Theis turning around his offense of late, it’s turning Boston into a matchup nightmare especially when you consider the three guys surrounding Hayward are averaging over 20 points per game now (Brown, Tatum, Walker).

5. A key win for the tiebreaker long game: The Eastern Conference is as loaded as it has ever been this decade with six teams in the hunt for 55-plus wins on the year. The Celtics have done well as a whole against the five other teams across the mix (4-3) at the top of the East despite being shorthanded, but the Raptors are one foe that will be important for Boston to finish ahead of given the C’s brutal history in Toronto (hadn’t won there since April 2015 before today). A win over a shorthanded Raptors squad won’t mean much for the long run in terms of how they match up head-to-head, but a 2-0 edge for Boston in the head-to-head series now could give Boston a crucial edge when it comes to playoff seeding. The Celtics will have a chance to clinch the season series with a win at the Garden on Saturday night. Given how well Boston has played at home all year long (12-1), securing that No. 2 seed will get a lot easier in the long run by getting wins in these head-to-head matchups against elite East foes.