BSJ Game Report: Celtics 131, Nuggets 112 - Tatum plays like an MVP, combines with Brown for 59, 5th straight win

Everything you need to know about the Celtics' win over the Denver Nuggets, with BSJ insight and analysis

IN A NUTSHELL

The Celtics rode Jaylen Brown to an early lead, got big contributions from the bench in the second quarter, absorbed a Nikola Jokic punch in the third, and pulled away with the MVP on the floor. Jayson Tatum outplayed Jokic, Brown was nearly perfect, and Al Horford turned into Sam Hauser for a night in what became a blowout win.

Box Score 

HEADLINES

Rare Jokic game: It’s not that he didn’t play well, it’s just weird to see him as a -14. In so many ways he was having a really good night with 29 points on 12-20 shooting, but the Celtics took away his other options. 

“He only had three assists,” Joe Mazzulla pointed out after the game. “He's a great player, and he can affect the game in a lot of different ways. But I thought we did a great job limiting his assists and his playmaking.”

With Jokic not finding his guys all over the floor, the Nuggets struggled to find their offense. They made their biggest run to cut Boston’s lead down to 2 when Jokic was off the floor late in the third. The Celtics got it back to six by the start of the fourth and then turned the game into a blowout with him on the floor. It’s not often you see that. Usually, teams build their leads with Jokic off the floor and he comes back and erases them. 

Tatum and Brown on a tear: Brown is averaging 25.3 points on 55.6% shooting over his last three games, including 37.5% from 3 and 83.3% from the free throw line. Tatum, meanwhile, is off to a monster start to the season but his last three games have been especially great as well. He’s putting up 34.7 points on 50% shooting, 34.5% from 3, and 82.4% from the line. Tatum is taking 11.3 free throws a game in that stretch. 

Boston on a tear: Five straight wins, and seven straight games with 15 turnovers or fewer. Just seven turnovers in this game to go along with 30 assists. It’s their third game this season with 30 or more assists, and they have only one game so far this season with fewer than 24. 

Payton Pritchard: More on him later, but he had 4 offensive rebounds and a blindside steal after a wild possession that helped hold things down in the middle of the game. 

“Teams don’t think I’m going to crash half the time, so they lose me,” Pritchard said. “But I just found a way to sneak in there, get my hands on the balls, tip them out or pull them down. Any way I can get an extra possession.”

TURNING POINT

I’ll go back to the 3:23 mark of the third quarter. The Nuggets were down as much as 13 in the quarter, but they had cut it down to just 2 when Aaron Gordon went to the line for a couple of free throws.

He missed both. 

When a team is making a comeback, little moments like that are deflating. Bruce Brown went to the line later in a 3-point game and made both. I know it doesn’t exactly work this way, but those two free throws could have been for the lead if Gordon made his shots, but the Celtics were able to close the quarter 9-4 and then open the fourth 9-2 to make it an 18-6 run that effectively broke the game open. 

I see it all the time where comebacks fall apart completely after getting close but not getting over the hump. I’ve seen plenty of games where if Gordon makes those 2 free throws and then Brown gives them the lead, it’s Denver that uses that momentum to make a big run. They couldn't do it and they fell apart. 

FIVE UP

Jayson Tatum: 34, 8, and 5, and Tatum is the youngest player in Celtics history to reach 8,000 points. Once again, Tatum put up monster scoring numbers without the benefit of a million 3-pointers. He took another 11 free throws and just dominated with decisive moves. 

Jaylen Brown: He opened up the game a perfect 10-10 before settling on an 11-15 night. But more impressively, he had 8 assists to lead the team. That's the third-highest assist night of his career (11 is the career high). 

Al Horford: The hot shooting rolls on. He was 6-8 from 3 in this game, which pushed him to 10-12 from deep over the last 3. 

“More than anything, it was just the way they were playing,” he said. “They were pressuring Jayson, some of our guys quite a bit. And I got some open looks. The guys did a good job finding me and they were just good looks. I had to take them."

This is such a critical element to Boston’s offensive success. Horford’s shooting has been trailing off year-by-year, but now with a slightly different role, more shooting around him, and the advancement of Tatum and Brown, he’s getting more chances to knock shots down. 

“Al is just a professional. He comes in night in and night out and does his job to the best of his abilities,” Brown said. “That rubs off on everyone. Tonight we knew that the way they cover us that he would have some openings, and we just tried to get him the ball. And he delivered. He came out – how old is Al, (36)? – he put up 20-plus points, etc. That’s amazing to be honest. Al is a professional. Nothing less.”

Grant Williams: He finally broke out of his timidness as a starter. He was more aggressive in this game and it paid off in a 13, 4, and 4 night where he shot 2-5 from 3 and 3-3 from 2. He also did a good job handling Jokic without demanding a ton of help, which allowed the Celtics to keep Jokic’s assists down. 

Payton Pritchard: With Malcolm Brogdon out, Pritchard got some playing time and he made the most of it. 11 points on 5-6 shooting, 5 rebounds (4 offensive) and a steal. The story of this game for a little while was pointing to the bench boosting the Celtics, and Pritchard was a big part of that. This was his highlight play:

“He’s sneaky,” Brown said, comparing him to a certain New Orleans player known for blindside steals too. “He’s got a little Jose in him … Alvarado. Pelicans, got a little sneak attack game. It worked out for us.”

ONE DOWN

Sam Hauser: He clearly lent Al Horford his shooting touch in this game. Hauser was just 1-6 from 3, but it wasn’t all bad. He had a nice cut for a layup and he rebounded the ball. He just had an off shooting night. 

TOP PLAYS

ONE TAKE KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- Pritchard is too good for this roster, but he might be too good to let go

I’ve been pretty consistent in my belief that Pritchard won’t end this season on the roster because he’s too good to be buried like he’s been. Some team will want to use him more often than Boston can. 

However, he also showed in this game why he’s such a luxury at his position. 

Brogdon’s right hamstring tightness doesn’t seem to be serious, but he obviously has a history of missing games due to injury. Marcus Smart seems to be held together by chicken wire, constantly limping or trying to work through stiffness. 

They're both going to miss time. Maybe the Celtics don’t want to part with such a valuable bench player right now when it can be argued that there's some fragility ahead of him at his position?

The impressive thing about Pritchard is that he has barely played and he stepped right in to make a strong impact right away. 

“I really respect him a lot,” Brown said. “His game, his work ethic, how hard he works, everything, how he just comes in and is just ready. You see some guys not get the opportunity and their spirit is down. Payton has his days, but Payton’s going to be a good player for a long time in this league just because of his mentality. Great addition to our locker room and good guy to have around.”

He is a good guy to have around. He never does anything at less than 100%. His deficiencies are there, and there's a reason why he’s buried on the bench, but when he does get the chance, he produces often.

As they like to say in sports, if you stay ready, you don’t have to get ready. 

“Working, going in, doubles, lifting every day still, playing every day, going back in at night,” Pritchard said of the routine to keep himself sharp. “I live this. Basketball, I love this stuff. So no matter what I’m gonna stay ready and whatever I get I’m gonna go out there and give it all.”

Bonus take: You will never see this again. Not like this. 

Next up: Boston is in Detroit for a back-to-back tomorrow night