NBA Notebook: How Ime Udoka and the Celtics take advantage of halftime

NBA halftimes last 15 minutes, but it's briefer than that, since the clock starts at the buzzer. When the horn sounds, the ball gets thrown back in play. It keeps games just over two hours in length, and pressures coaches to compartmentalize their adjustments between the second and third quarters. It's like an extended timeout. Few have matched Ime Udoka's effectiveness in those settings this season. February's eastern conference coach of the month has the Celtics tied with the Hornets for the most points in third quarters, at 29.0 per game while shooting 49%. 

The Celtics averaged 32.8 PPG in the third during their current five-game win streak. Udoka, like entering timeouts, meets with his assistants armed with tablets and laptops breaking down film in real time. The coaches need to rapidly come up with a presentation for the team they show on the big screen, presenting one or maybe two areas of adjustment for the second half. They typically lead the team back to its best attributes. 'Look at what we do when we execute.' Proving with results. During Udoka's preparation, the players get some time to relax, discuss, or someone like Marcus Smart will address the team. The routine led to a 14-0 run to tie the game out of half against the Hawks, a 10-2 punch in the first 80 seconds of the third against Memphis and a 6-for-8 Celtics start to the second half take the lead back from the Nets last Sunday that all led to wins. 

"It's a little bit of both," Udoka said at practice this week. "We give the players some time to talk amongst themselves, kind of decompress and take a look at what's going well and what's not going so well in the first half, and a lot of the time that's where the leadership behind the scenes comes out. They're talking it out in there, obviously I'm getting with my staff and we're getting very specific on the film as far as what we need to improve on. Those things are areas we can really zero in on and I think our focus has been great coming out, so it's a little bit of film work, it's a lot of discussion between both staff and players, and getting reset to come out like it's the start of the game."

Udoka mostly showed turnovers during those three halftimes, where Boston either trailed or faced one-possession games while he saw opportunities to build 15-20 point leads if the Celtics cleaned up their passing and defensive rebounding. The team slipped to 26th (68.4 DREB%) in defensive rebounding over its past five games, while its 16.7 turnover percentage fell to 26th in the league in second quarters over that stretch. They're No. 1 at limiting giveaways into the third (8.5%) during their win streak, assisting on 66.7% of their baskets in those frames. That possession-for-possession detail has allowed Boston to build the largest scoring margins in the new year (+11.6 per 100 possessions). 

The Celtics watched film of how easy they made life for Trae Young last week as he went off for 8-for-12 shooting in the first half. Boston wanted to make him shoot further behind the three-point line and ramp up the physicality against him without fouling. On offense, Udoka switched Derrick White onto the defensively-challenged Hawks star and sent him downhill. White closed the third on a personal 9-4 run that gave the Celtics lead entering the fourth quarter. 

"We show breakdowns," Grant Williams said. "Understand like if we didn't break down here, these guys wouldn't have these four points, or six points because it led to this after. Things of that nature, where we really hold teams to numbers that they aren't used to or shots that they don't want to take. Most of it is trying to show us the reads that are there, rather than the reads that we made at the time. So then we go into the second half understanding that 'hey, this read that we made in the first half, we now know is not going to be there and we can make the second one.'" 

That halftime also became a chance to check on Jaylen Brown, injured early in a scary-looking right ankle turn that he assured the team he'd be fine. Aaron Nesmith replaced him in the starting lineup entering the third quarter to keep Udoka's rotations in place, add a dose of physicality and the switching scheme remained intact with less fouling. 

Udoka told the team if they mess up a switch, be aggressive and trap Young, don't get caught in-between and that immediately showed on numerous plays. Smart had spoken to the team about the next man up mentality and moving on from the shock of losing one of their stars. Udoka treats the opening minutes of the third like a fresh slate, and Boston has been starting their second chances well by emphasizing communication in their small window between halves. 

"Really, (we) just listen to everybody's opinion and the mistakes we've been doing," Robert Williams III said describing Celtics halftimes. "We do that for maybe about 5-6 minutes, and then hear what coach has to say obviously about the mistakes we've been making, talk about it, and then go out there and plan on fixing it. That's really about it."

Connectivity became key two nights later in a showcase game against the Grizzlies where Memphis where Boston's turnovers set up one of Ja Morant's highlights of the season in transition and more routine uncontested finishes on the break. Live ball turnovers and eight Grizzlies offensive rebounds tortured and undermined the Celtics at both ends. Udoka went simpler that time addressing the strength of Boston's passes, knowing that it'd be difficult for Morant and Memphis to play one-on-one in the half court. 

Williams and Jayson Tatum both attacked downhill on the first possessions out of the locker room and found Smart for three on back-to-back plays. One minute and two baskets later, the Celtics had a double-digit lead. 

"I think early in the year, we would come out and it wasn't like that," Al Horford said. "It was flat. It was bad. I really can't explain it. We're coming out even more determined and Marcus coming out hitting those two threes, I felt like that was the difference. That just kind of opened everything up. Jayson made the simple read, gave him a pass, he shot it, made it, and then from then on we just got that confidence and really got it going."

White saw Udoka in more of a secondary role in San Antonio halftimes early in his career, Gregg Popovich commanding the room and his assistants in the same preparatory coaches meetings that help Udoka now in his first head coaching job. He's formulated his distinct approach, White noted, still fixated on defense and unselfishness that became the bond between Udoka and the now all-time winningest NBA head coach as of Friday. White knew what to expect from him. 

The locker room environment seemed less certain as he heard different reports of turmoil we all did from within the Celtics locker room. Instead, White joined a group that's playing together on both ends of the floor, backing each other up on the offensive end and making the extra passes like he routinely does on the offensive end. He assumed he'd be a perfect fit and it is playing out on the court, as well as in the room where Smart and teammates infamously clashed during the NBA Bubble in Orlando. 

"He does a great job of staying with us," Smart said. "It'd have been easy for him to go and say 'what the hell is going on with this group?'"

Lately, as Tatum reaches Larry Bird scoring heights on Boston's win streak, the adjustment, as Smart put it, is to get Tatum the ball and get out of the way. Tatum scored or assisted on the first 14 points of the second half on his way to his 54-point afternoon that arguably marked the best game of his career. He set the pace, made the right reads and escaped the double team. Everyone else slides into their roles. 

Having a player like Tatum makes it all easier, Udoka never wanting to change him, but making the subtle tweaks that would allow him to become a playmaker as well as a scorer. That hasn't happened in a single halftime, or overnight. 

Udoka's patience and self-assuredness prevailed through fourth-quarter meltdowns, shooting slumps and offensive stagnancy earlier in the season. He took credit for challenging the team's mental toughness, even when some criticized his tough talk toward his players after they fell to 18-21 after a 25-point collapse in Madison Square Garden, while crediting the players for the team's turnaround.

His approach and plan never wavered, aside from a few lineup and rotation tweaks. Defense and passing, two simple ingredients he's carried through his career and pulls the Celtics back to at halftime when they veer away from it. They are honing in on sets into fourth quarters that work, like slipping Tatum from screens into mismatches the free throw line. Brown and Tatum are running pick-and-rolls in crunch time and the Celtics have won 23-of-29. The offense reached top-10 status when its transition game got, flowing like Udoka predicted in January. It's all looking like the coach predicted right now. 

"You have the coach of the month in there," Udoka quipped after the Celtics beat the Grizzlies. 

Here's what else happened around the NBA this week...

Atlanta (32-34): Brought in former point guard Jeff Teague as as a scout. Remember one year ago he was the Celtics' backup before going on to win the championship with the Bucks by beat the Hawks in the east finals on the way. Atlanta is still barely hanging on above the Wizards in the east playoff race (2.5 games up on No. 11 Washington) after losses to Detroit and Milwaukee this week. 

Boston (41-27): Swept through the Nets, Hornets and Pistons this week to win five straight and 16 of their last 18, including seeing Jayson Tatum join the MVP conversation by falling just short of Larry Bird's Celtics record over a five-game span. Tatum scored 199 (39.8 points per game) on 54.2% shooting, out-dueling Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, then torching Charlotte and Detroit late. NBA.com lists him No. 6. They'll retire Kevin Garnett's No. 5 jersey and face Luka Doncic and the equally-hot Mavericks on Sunday. 

Brooklyn (34-33): Back above .500 and in the consciences of eastern conference rivals after demolishing the 76ers, 129-100, in Ben Simmons' return to Philadelphia. Simmons still doesn't appear close to returning, but since Durant's return he's averaging 26.8 PPG, while Kyrie Irving dropped 30.3 PPG on 57.4% shooting. They averaged 127 PPG on their three-game road trip, but are slated to play 11 of their final 15 games in New York City without Irving available. They're currently the No. 8 seed in the east, 4.5 games back of Cleveland for 6. Their defense impressed against James Harden and Joel Embiid, holding the pair to 8-for-34 shooting between Irving and Andre Drummond. 

Charlotte (33-35): Another week where they won when they scored upward of 142 points and lost when their defense needed to carry them. They're ranked No. 22 defensively in March while winning 3-of-5. Isaiah Thomas, earning a second 10-day contract with the Hornets, got to play his former Celtics on Wednesday and shared heartbreaking sentiment on his pursuit of a return to Boston before the game. 

Chicago (40-26): Alex Caruso (wrist) returned to practice in full on Friday, while Patrick Williams (wrist) got cleared for contact and Lonzo Ball (knee) could return in two weeks as the Bulls approach full health for the first time all season. Caruso has played two games since Dec. 20, the Bulls falling to No. 23 in defense since then after starting the year No. 11 before his string of injuries. Ball last played Jan. 14 before knee surgery, 13 PPG, 5.4 RPG and 5.1 APG on 42.3% shooting. Williams last played on Oct. 28. Their offense remained No. 6 through it all. Boston and Chicago would meet if the playoffs began today, tied for No. 4. 

Cleveland (38-28): Another crushing blow in an increasingly injury-riddled season. All-star center Jarrett Allen is out indefinitely with a fractured left middle finger. Caris LeVert (foot) and Rajon Rondo (toe) fell injured in recent weeks after major knee injuries to Collin Sexton and Ricky Rubio earlier in the season. They survived Sunday's game against the Raptors, then held on against the Pacers behind 41 points and 13 assists from Darius Garland, who will carry as much weight as ever before alongside Evan Mobley and veteran Kevin Love. They're now behind Boston as the No. 6 seed, 2.0 games ahead of the Raptors on the play-in tournament line. 

Dallas (41-26): Like the Celtics, they're 25-8 in 2022 and have played among the best defenses in the league around one MVP caliber talent in Luka Dončić, who's averaging 33.5 PPG, 10.8 RPG and 7.8 APG on 46.9% shooting, compared to Jayson Tatum's 29.9 PPG, 7.3 RPG and 4.5 APG on 48.1% shooting over his their last 15 games. Sunday is going to be a special clash between two of the next faces of the league. 

Denver (40-27): Nikola Jokic and company cooled off late in the week on their third game in four nights against the Warriors after a scorching four-game win streak that might've cemented the big man with back-to-back MVP awards. He poured 46 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists on the streaking Pelicans, before unloading 32 points, 15 rebounds and 13 assists on the Warriors on a back-to-back. They are 13 games over .500 despite missing two of their stars practically all season, and they're No. 5 in offense and No. 11 in defense in the new year. Jokic had the Warriors shaken at times.

Detroit (18-49): They're showing flashes, winning 6-of-10 before numerous injuries to Isaiah Stewart and Hamidou Diallo ended their week with a fourth quarter collapse in Boston. Cade Cunningham had arguably his best game as a rookie, despite being held scoreless on 0-for-6 shooting in the final frame, finishing with 27 points, eight rebounds and seven assists while dueling with Jayson Tatum for three quarters. They've beaten the Hawks, Pacers, Raptors, Hornets, Celtics and Cavaliers since getting healthy around the all-star break, with Cunningham making a late charge at the rookie of the year award alongside Evan Mobley.

Golden State (45-22): Mercifully will welcome Draymond Green back to the lineup next week with James Wiseman shortly behind as the Warriors try to regroup for the stretch run after losing 9-of-15, with Klay Thompson in a 40.4% shooting slump and the defense slipping to No. 20 over the past 15 games to render Golden State a slight net negative rating team. Steph Curry and Jordan Poole combined for 55 points in a much-needed revenge win over Denver, while Jonathan Kuminga led the team with 21 points in a win over the Clippers. 

Houston (17-50): If you miss Bruno Fernando, he's getting minutes for the Rockets and posted 16 points and 11 rebounds in the team's loss to the Mavericks on Friday. Jalen Green's recent rise is worth watching too, with the No. 2 overall pick shaking off his slow rookie start averaging 20.6 PPG on 49.6% shooting over his last 10 games. He scored 32 points and helped Houston embarrass the Lakers in overtime. 

Indiana (22-45): Up to No. 5 in the lottery hierarchy after two more losses to begin this week. They've lost 7-of-10. 

Clippers (35-34): The offense is going as streaky shooters like Reggie Jackson, Marcus Morris and Luke Kennard go right now, Jackson going off for 31 points against the Wizards while the Clippers' offense shut off in losses to Golden State and Atlanta. Meanwhile, Paul George (elbow) entered a non-contact ramp up regimen to see if he'll be able to return this season. Ty Lue doesn't anticipate George or Kawhi Leonard (knee) playing with the team in the playoffs if they don't make it back by the end of the regular season (13 games left). 

Lakers (29-37): Won just their second game over their last 10, needing 50 more points from LeBron James to top the Wizards. James missed a key game against the Spurs in the play-in race with more knee swelling, before allowing an embarrassing 139 points to the Rockets despite 53 points between James and Russell Westbrook. Westbrook griped about treatment by fans this week, citing the Westbrick nickname, while an LA Times story indicated some players and staffers are simply trying to get through the final month. 

Memphis (46-22): Dropped a disappointing loss to the Rockets before Ja Morant got back to work dropping 65 points, 16 assists and 15 rebounds in wins over the Spurs and Pelicans. Morant remains No. 4 in the NBA MVP ladder, while the Grizzlies held on to their No. 2 seed by 0.5 games over the Warriors. Dillon Brooks (ankle), who hasn't played since Jan. 8. progressed to five-on-five work and should return to the team on their four-game road trip. 

Miami (45-23): Lost a battle of the top seeds from each conference in a flat, 90-point effort without Jimmy Butler against the Suns. Victor Oladipo scored 12 points on 6-for-12 shooting in his return from a long-standing quad injury that plagued his final season with the Pacers before getting dealt to the Rockets and Heat in the same season. He had last played in April, 2021, and expects to stay with Miami again, according to Jake Fischer, who wrote about the Heat's outlook, including a likely five-year, $184-million extension for Tyler Herro that would surpass Jaylen Brown's $106-million, with the team possibly looking at trading Duncan Robinson.

Milwaukee (42-25): Stormed into a six-game win streak after their disappointing loss to the Nets and pulled within 2.5 games of Miami for the No. 1 seed in the east. Khris Middleton had his game of the season by scoring 44 points to top the Suns in a NBA Finals rematch. Giannis Antetokounmpo dropped 39 points on the Thunder before pouring 43 on the Hawks. Their offense is approaching production relative to last year's championship run, but their defense continues to lag, allowing 114.2 points per 100 possessions over their last 15 games (19th). 

Minnesota (38-30): Extended their win streak to six games for the first time since 2004 and have won 22-of-33 in 2022, tied for the sixth-best mark in the new year with the Heat. They boast the top offense in the NBA over that stretch by nearly two points per 100 possessions, while their defense snuck up to No. 9 over the last 15 games. Karl-Anthony Towns is finally at the forefront of a winning team, and Minnesota is beginning to rally around the long-hapless Wolves. 

New Orleans (27-40): Lost Brandon Ingram (hamstring) for at least 7-10 games just as the Pelicans had put it all together and even enticed Zion Williamson enough to rejoin the team on the bench and seemingly make a final push to return this season. New Orleans has posted a top-10 net rating while winning 7-of-15, while Williamson progresses to some light shooting with only a one-game cushion on the Spurs in the play-in tournament race as the No. 10 seed. They're now on a four-game losing streak. 

New York (28-39): Julius Randle dropped 46 points, 26 points and 36 points in a whirlwind week where the Knicks beat the Kings, blew out the Mavericks by 30 and narrowly lost a Randle-Ja Morant duel in Memphis. Where was this all season? It at least provides some hope for a Randle bounce back if New York gives him another chance to lead this team. They're still 4.5 games back from the playoffs. Cam Reddish (shoulder) is out for the season after just 15 games with his new team. He'll become a restricted free agent this offseason. 

Oklahoma City (20-46): Lu Dort (shoulder), Ty Jerome (hernia) and Mike Muscala (ankle) are all out for the season as the Thunder have won four straight and remain in No. 4 position in the NBA lottery. Two years ago, Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19 at a Thunder game and sent the 2019-20 NBA season into postponement in what many in the U.S. deemed the beginning of the ongoing pandemic.

Orlando (18-50): Cole Anthony led the Magic over the Pelicans before Markelle Fultz took another step following his return with 14 points and seven assists to top the Timberwolves. They played the Suns within a possession as Orlando looks more competitive with more of their team intact, by far the most injury-riddled team this season. They've won 5-of-8 since the all-star break, led by Wendell Moore Jr. averaging 18.5 PPG and 12.0 RPG. They're still the second-worst team in the league, 0.5 games better than Houston. 

Philadelphia (40-25): The James Harden and Joel Embiid fun ended alongside the day full of Ben Simmons heckling, beginning at the Nets' team hotel and into the arena where he practiced passes and dunks pregame instead of shooting. Simmons didn't play in his long-awaited return to Philadelphia after last month's trade, but his return proved nonetheless defiant. Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant took it to Harden and Embiid with physical defense and trash talk. Harden faded for most of the night. Embiid struggled to score. It was a stagnant, worst-case scenario for an otherwise-rolling group that now faces the prospect of possibly needing to manage the standings to avoid Brooklyn.

Phoenix (53-14): Since Chris Paul went down they've remained No. 3 in defense, but their offense dipped to 17th while winning 5-of-9. Devin Booker is doing the heavy lifting at 26.3 PPG while Cam Johnson joins him closely with 24.0 PPG. Cam Payne is dishing 9.7 APG in Paul's place, but the team has taken a step back off their scorching pace to start the year. Fortunately, they're still up by 7.5 games on the west's No. 2, Memphis.

Portland (25-40): Their starting lineups have turned from a constant to the who's who of who's that? Much like the Thunder. Portland stands within 1.0 game of the play-in tournament, and they seem determined to avoid it. Brandon Williams, C.J. Elleby, Elijah Hughes and Drew Eubanks started alongside Josh Hart in the Blazers' loss to Utah, their sixth straight, while their offense sunk to last place by nearly three points per 100 possessions (100.1). 

Sacramento (24-44): Another ugly week. They lost three straight, further hindering their slim playoff hopes, while Domantas Sabonis drew a one-game suspension for making contact with an official and getting ejected from a blowout loss to the Knicks. Sabonis, like Tyrese Haliburton before him, spoke of wanting to change the Kings' culture. 

"I’m excited. I’m excited about the whole journey," he said. "It sucks that we have that (playoff) drought, but the fact that we can be part of something that can turn it around, you know, that’s the goal. Come in and change the perspective of this organization and what people think."

San Antonio (26-41): Gregg Popovich stands alone with the most wins by a coach in NBA history after the Spurs beat the Jazz on Friday. 1,336. 

San Antonio could still crash the play-in tournament, now only one game back of No. 10 New Orleans. Popovich thanked Don Nelson, the coach he passed, and many others in a humble press conference after.

Toronto (36-30): Scored a key win over the Spurs and stunned the Suns behind 42 points from Gary Trent Jr. to stay ahead of the surging Nets in the play-in tournament race. They'll need to lean on continued top-10 defensive play as their offense slipped to 22nd over their last 15 games, Toronto winning 8-of-15. 

Utah (41-25): Even while they're a home court team in the west, it's always something with this group. They lost to the Spurs, collapsing ahead by double-digits late in what's become a Jazz trend. They're still No. 5 in offense and defense over their last 15 games.  

Off the court, the franchise made a major commitment to support Ukrainian refugees amid the Russian invasion. 

Washington (29-36): As bad as things look with the Lakers, they haven't looked much better for the Wizards after the Russell Westbrook trade, despite a momentary hot start. They lost handily to the Lakers to complete a sweep at the hands of the LA teams, Kyle Kuzma and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope only mustering 27 points against their old team.