Celtics Notebook: Bonus bench production, LeBron James' praise, & Jayson Tatum vs. Jaylen Brown

The Boston Celtics rode a four-game winning streak into the sunset of their first half. It was a much-needed lift for a team about to take a standing-eight count. 

One of the most encouraging parts of this run is how much of it was fueled by their bench, which averaged 38.5 points per game, a big boost from the 29 points they averaged when the Celtics dropped eight of 11 games over three weeks in February (good for fourth-worst in the NBA). 

The Celtics are still getting an overwhelming majority of their scoring from their starters, who average 79.2 points per game, but the recent bump in bench scoring has been a godsend for a team whose two main threats, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, are desperate for some time off.

“They're giving us a huge, huge lift,” Kemba Walker recently said. “And we need that, you know? Me and Jaylen and JT, and when (Marcus) Smart comes back, we're going to draw so much attention, and we need those guys to be themselves, be aggressive on both ends of the floor and just bring that energy, and that's what they've been doing.”

Grant Williams was one of those guys, scoring 17 points on 78% shooting against the Toronto Raptors one game after a DNP-coach’s decision. Williams has had a spotty season, mixing in gems like this with duds a 21 minute, zero point, -23 performance against the Atlanta Hawks. 

Williams, who admitted to not handling the mental challenges of this season well, acknowledges that bench players need to be ready for either big minutes, or no minutes.  

“That's the benefit of having such a talented team,” he said. “You never know when your number is going to be called. So Brad (Stevens) entrusted me tonight and threw me in there and I was able to perform at the level we needed.”

His minutes came at the expense of Semi Ojeleye, who never came off the bench after his initial seven minute stint.

“It’s definitely a challenge,” he said before the game. “I think that part of being a professional is staying ready regardless of what’s going on, and you have to mature into that. It doesn’t come naturally, it certainly didn’t for me. So right now, I’m in that place where I just focus on how I can help my team, whether that’s not playing and just encouraging guys, or playing. Whatever that is, that’s what I want to do.”

Stevens put a lot of emphasis on these past four games, and coached them to win rather than stick with certain rotations and hope guys could learn lessons on the fly and figure things out. Underperformers were on shorter leashes, and their stars played longer minutes. The end result was a total team effort that, while still clearly imperfect, led to four critical wins for a team still hoping to find a groove and make a deep playoff run. 

“The biggest thing is just togetherness, being there for one another, whether it's on offense or defense, making the right simple play,” Grant Williams said. “And then defensively having each other's backs... it's just been a collective effort and a lot of guys stepped up.”

High Praise

When LeBron James selected Jaylen Brown for his team, he called him “Jaylen ‘under-appreciated’ Brown.”  

“That’s great - if one of, if not THE best player, selects you, and he points out what you’re doing, or something that he’s seen, is great,” Brown said after the game. “Appreciate him for that.” 

This is the second season LeBron has praised one of Boston’s young stars, declaring in an Instagram post last year Jayson Tatum “is an ABSOLUTE PROBLEM”

Brown was seven years-old when James was a rookie. Tatum was six. They grew up watching LeBron d-o-m-i-n-a-t-e, and now he’s heaping praise on them, picking them for teams, and welcoming them into his club. 

This is as good as it gets for a young player in the NBA. Each has gotten to work out with their childhood heroes (Brown with Tracy McGrady and Tatum with Kobe Bryant) and now this. 

I discussed this at length in the latest Locked On Celtics podcast, which you can listen to below or subscribe on Apple, Google, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.


Sunday: Tatum v. Brown

Brown and Tatum are both in the pre-All-Star 3-point shootout. Asked if they had a wager on the contest, Brown said “hey man, you trying to get me caught up or something? I definitely can’t - there will be no official wagers.”

Which is code for “yes, but I can’t actually say yes because I’ll get in trouble.” 

They’re both on opposite teams as well, meaning it’s possible Brown and Tatum can match up against each other. 

“With me and JT everything is definitely a competition,” Brown said. “I’m looking forward to competing and sharing the floor. Just tell him don’t guard me - that’s all I’m gonna say.”

The light-hearted trash talking will certainly grow louder in the game as the friends and teammates continue in Atlanta what is really a common occurrence in the Auerbach Center in Brighton. 

“We practice against each other all the time, play 1-on-1” Tatum said, which I can confirm having seen a few matchups before the pandemic reduced us to Zoom-only interactions. “But it’s a different environment. So that’ll be cool too.”

No Concerns

Brad Stevens isn’t worried about either Tatum or Brown overdoing it in Atlanta. 

“There’s no big concern with either of those guys,” Stevens said before beating the Raptors. “I think at the end of the day, one game in the middle of a week will be nothing compared to what they’ve been through, certainly over the bubble plus the short offseason plus ramping up and then playing the dense schedule that we’ve played.”