BSJ Game Report: Boston Celtics 111, Cleveland Cavaliers 101 - Jaylen Brown's 34 points pace uneven Celtics past Cavs

Everything you need to know about the Boston Celtics' 111-101 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, with BSJ insight and analysis.

IN A NUTSHELL

The Celtics were a little maddening in this one. They built up leads and then relaxed and let the Cavs have a little bit of life. Tacko Fall started for the Cavs and actually prevented the Celtics from getting to the rim a bit, but Jaylen Brown got hot and the Celtics separated themselves in the second. It looked like the C’s would run away and hide in the third but they had a four-minute lull that let the Cavs back into it. That robbed us of Joe Johnson minutes, though he did get in and score a bucket at the end.

Box Score

HEADLINES

Jaylen Brown had it going: He came out hot and stayed that way. He did a little bit of everything, hitting at the rim, mid-range, and from deep. That, my friends, is a three-level scorer. 

Opportunities are paying off: With so many guys out, Romeo Langford and Payton Pritchard are getting more opportunities than ever, and both are making them pay off. Aaron Nesmith … well … not quite as much. 

Something is up with Schröder: He is 6-31 over his last three games. That's 19% shooting. Yikes.

TURNING POINT

The Celtics opened up the third quarter on a 9-2 run to push the lead to 22. Robert Williams and Brown basically took turns building the lead, and while the game got close later, this was the run that created the big enough cushion for Boston.

SECOND GUESS

I’m not trying to turn this game report into a bunch of Schröder-bashing but it was pretty clear he didn’t have it. He checked into the game with 4:12 to go in the third quarter and Boston up 80-58. He went 1-5 to close the quarter and committed a foul. It was 85-73 by the end of the quarter. 

FOUR UP

Jaylen Brown: He didn’t get blocked in this game, so that ends that streak, which was nice to see. He did a great job of using the Cavs defense against them, attacking when Tacko was out and stepping into some clean looks knowing Fall was falling back in drop coverage. 

“We knew that if we came off the screen, if (Robert Williams) set a good screen, that we most likely would be naked on the shot,” he said. “So Rob and Enes set some really good screens and the majority of my looks came from those guys setting good screens.” 

Robert Williams: The screen-setter certainly freed up plenty of looks for Brown and Jayson Tatum, but Williams was also active on the offensive boards, which fueled his 21 point, 11 rebound night. He dropped a cool 7 assists in this one too. 

“I saw that early in training camp. It’s an area I think is underestimated for him,” Ime Udoka said. “I thought he could initiate some offense from up top without knowing how good a passer he was. He threaded the needle on a few, and then it comes down to guys making shots. Sometimes he’ll make those same passes and we miss the shot, but he still has that vision and can do a lot of things out there.”

Payton Pritchard: He was a huge part of the second-quarter turnaround that gave Boston a nice halftime lead. The Celtics even ran a set play to get him a corner 3-pointer to start the quarter, a really nice piece of confidence by the coach in his young player.

That's called a hammer screen for Pritchard. The San Antonio Spurs ran that all the time in Udoka's days there. 

Romeo Langford: The box score doesn’t scream at you but he did a little of everything. 11 points 9 rebounds, 2 steals, a block, and a turnover is a nice line, but he was impactful on the floor. He defended well, got in and kept rebounds alive, cut at the right time … one of Langford’s better games in his young career. 

ONE DOWN

Dennis Schröder: OK last one, I swear. When he committed a take foul early in the first quarter to stop a fast break when Cleveland was in the penalty, it should have been clear his head wasn’t in the game. If he’s still not feeling well, just don’t play him. 

TOP PLAYS

ONE TAKE KARALIS IS PROBABLY GOING TO REGRET LATER

Ime is going to have to make some decisions here. 

There are two forces at play in this stretch. 

First, there is a big sample size that tells us things about this team that might not be working, or at least could be working better. For example, Schröder and Marcus Smart together on the floor for a long time is not great. And before the game, Udoka basically said going double big was a compromise of sorts.

“When we’ve been with our best is with our big lineups to start the game and start the season. Just haven’t had a lot of consistency with those lineups,” he said. “We worked out well when the defensive rankings came out with those lineups, but we don’t play as fast offensively, but can still be efficient there. Our identity has shifted more toward the defensive side when we have our whole team.”

Let’s move on to the second force, which is the opportunity being seized by guys who normally haven't played much, or who haven't played in certain roles. 

Pritchard is making a very clear case that he deserves minutes. Everyone agrees on that. Langford is making a similar case, and a lot of people, myself included, have been begging the coach to try starting someone other than Schröder when a starter is down. 

In this game, Udoka did just that, going with Langford instead. 

“We knew they were going to play big,” Udoka said. “So we wanted some bigger size there, and just to obviously get (Schröder) back in the role he’s played most of the year when we have everybody whole, obviously coming off the bench and doing what he did there. … He’s started at times and then obviously comes off the bench when we want more size with Romeo in there.”

This is Udoka’s opening to keep Schröder out of the starting lineup for good. This is the first healthy bench stint for Schröder when a starter has gone down. We don’t know who will be available for the Christmas Day game in Milwaukee, but Udoka has a chance to keep it that way. 

And then there's Williams, whose 7 assists in this game harkened back to last season and his ability to find guys who cut. Just look at this one. 

I mean, come on. That is just gorgeous. I can’t stop watching that play. 

Maybe there's a way for Udoka to get the defense he wants AND the offense he’s going for by moving Horford to the bench to pair him with Schröder (it might not be a coincidence that Schröder is struggling with Horford out). 

There's evidence presenting itself, albeit in small samples, that there are alternatives to how Udoka has been running his rotations out there. This COVID madness could be a blessing in disguise for Boston if it forces some evidence into the coaching staff’s hands that could present some alternatives to the way things have been done.