Everything you need to know about the Celtics' 109-92 victory over the Hornets with BSJ insight and analysis
Box Score
HEADLINES
Fourth-quarter runaway: It wasn’t pretty for the better part of 48 minutes but a dominant fourth quarter from the C’s core and Enes Kanter helped put away the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday in a 109-92 victory for the visitors. Jayson Tatum scored 13 of his game-high 24 points in the first quarter but it was the stellar play by Gordon Hayward (21 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists), Kemba Walker (22 points, 7 assists) and Enes Kanter (13 points, 14 rebounds, career-high 6 blocks) in the second half which helped turn a tight game into a runaway for the shorthanded C’s. Boston improved to 10-6 on the road this season with the victory and swept the season series against the Hornets (3-0) with the win, taking home each game by an average of 20 points.
It was the third double-double of the season for Hayward and Kanter, which helped carry Boston’s offense despite missing Jaylen Brown (illness) in the win. The Celtics return home now for two days off before hosting the Hawks at the Garden on Friday.
Tightened second-half rotation helps lead to win: Stevens used his personnel liberally in the first half, playing 10 guys altogether even without Brown in the fold. However, he tightened things up in the second half, riding the starters along with Kanter, Ojeleye and Wanamaker in a tight eight-man rotation that helped provide steadier play after an up-and-down first half for the C's. All three reserves made positive contributions in the fourth quarter, helping Boston a sizable lead without having to lean on their starters too heavily for big minutes.
TURNING POINT
The Celtics kicked off the fourth quarter with a 9-0 run, turning a five-point game into a double-digit edge for the visitors behind the scoring of Hayward, Tatum and Kanter. Charlotte could not cut the lead below 10 for the final nine minutes of the contest.
TWO UP
Jayson Tatum: The third-year forward scored a career-high 39 points against the Hornets last Sunday and continued his hot scoring ways in the first quarter, going a perfect 5-of-5 from the field with 13 points in the opening frame. Three of those makes came from beyond the arc. He finished with a game-high 24 points and averaged 28.3 ppg against the Hornets this year.
Gordon Hayward: The veteran bounced back from an ugly shooting night against the Raptors with a couple of nice finishes and a pair of 3s in the first half on his way to 21 points. He also added 10 rebounds to finish with his third double-double of the year, including a career-high five offensive rebounds.
TWO DOWN
Marcus Smart: He earned a spot start with Jaylen Brown sidelined but did not help Boston’s offense at all early on with his shot selection. He missed all five of his shots in the first half, including four from beyond the arc. Several of those were contested looks with plenty of time left in the shot clock, so he needs to tighten up his shot selection until he gets into a better rhythm.
Grant Williams: After a couple of misses from downtown in the first half, Stevens turned to Semi Ojeleye for some minutes at power forward and the third-year forward responded with a pair of 3s. Ojeleye took over Williams’ minutes in the second half, the latest twist in the battle of playing time between the duo.
TOP PLAY
Kemba had a little extra zip on the ball in today's @jetblue play of the game ? pic.twitter.com/A2NABBESwn
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) December 31, 2019
TWO TAKES B-ROBB WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER
Enes Kanter has been the best center on the team for the past couple weeks: While Kanter has shown his warts against elite pick-and-roll players (see: Toronto) he’s been a force for the C’s against mediocre and subpar NBA squads over the past few weeks. In his last eight games, Kanter is averaging a double-double (11-11) in just 21 minutes per night while shooting 59 percent from the field. He also leads the team in net rating over this stretch (+10.0), beating up on second units across the association. While there may be calls to move Kanter into the starting five with this type of production, his ability to be hidden against second units for bigger minutes is probably a better net result for this team right now. At some point though, it will be tempting to see the offensive upside that is created with Kanter on the offensive glass while being surrounded by four elite scorers in the starting five. However, as the team keeps winning now, I’d expect his role to remain consistent.
Terry Rozier hasn’t changed much in his new home: It was another day of struggles for the $51 million man as Rozier managed just 10 points on 13 field goal attempts and zero free throws against the Celtics over 34 minutes. He’s putting together some respectable averages on the season (17.1 ppg on 41/38/84 splits) but his turnover rate has spiked tremendously since joining Charlotte. More importantly, he’s still relying heavily on contested jumpers and wild finishes, failing to improve his efficiency much inside the arc. With a net rating that is second-worst on the roster (-6.8), it’s hard to see the Hornets making any notable gains with him in a starting role unless Rozier starts improving in several areas.