BSJ Game Report: Celtics 117, Pelicans 109 - C's survive furious late run for 9th straight win

Everything you need to know about the Celtics win over the New Orleans Pelicans, with BSJ insight and analysis

IN A NUTSHELL

The Celtics looked like they were on their way to another record 3-point shooting night in the first quarter of this game, hitting 10 of their first 16 treys. Then the Pelicans bench came in and made a huge run (Pelicans bench outscored Boston’s 39-15 in the game). The Celtics opened their lead back up in a frantic (ahem -- sloppy) third quarter but the Pelicans made another late run to whittle the lead back down, but the Celtics were able to hold on.

Box Score

HEADLINES

Finding a way: Once again, they found themselves in what some might call an unnecessary battle in a game where they had an 18-point lead in the third quarter. They had 14 second-half turnovers that led to 17 Pelicans points. Jaylen Brown had 6 of those.

“Anytime there’s a turnover, it’s usually not one person’s fault,” Joe Mazzulla said. “It’s usually because of a spacing issue or decision-making issue or executing, and so I thought he did a great job showing his poise and made some good plays handling the basketball and made plays when we needed to at the end.”

Derrick White steps up: He was 3 points off his career high of 29, and he was a 3-pointer shy of his career-best in 3-point makes. So if he’d just made one more, he’d have tied both. It’s a shame he only went 6-8 from deep. White was a game-high +21. 

Bad Bench: It’s not often that the C’s bench gets rolled like it did in this game. They were outscored 25-8 in the second half. Malcolm Brogdon was definitely not his usual self, which could be just a rust issue after a few games off. 

TURNING POINT 

White checked into the game with 9:28 to go and the Celtics scored 5 quick points to slow a Pelicans run and rebuild a 13-point lead. It was just enough of a pad to hold off the Pelicans' final run. 

FOUR UP

Derrick White: Once again, I think he was the star of the game. He was a calming force and, once again, he was a killer from beyond the arc. 

“I feel good, getting good looks and just shooting it and making them,” he said afterwards, “So just got to continue to put in the work on off days and if I keep getting good looks keep shooting with confidence.”

He’s shooting 45% from deep this year. That's about 10 points higher than any full season he’s had. 

Al Horford: 18 points on 7-8 shooting, including 4-5 from 3. All of his 3-pointers came in the first half, so maybe the Celtics should have found him a little more often after halftime. He missed one right away in the third and never shot another. 

Jaylen Brown: The turnovers were bad, and I’m not overlooking them. They were a huge reason for the Pelicans' run to close the game. However, I’m giving him credit for shooting 50% and leading the team with 27 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists to go with 2 steals. That's just a huge game from him, and he was able to stay with it down the stretch and come up with some key buckets to undo the mess that he made. Not his best fourth quarter, but he fought through it.

Jayson Tatum: 19 points and 10 assists and another rough shooting night overall after a hot start. Again, though, he did other things to help the team.

TWO DOWN

Grant Williams: Couldn't buy a bucket for a long stretch and he was a -11 in the second half. He did hit a huge corner 3-pointer that the Celtics needed very much, but every time I looked up in the second half, it seemed like he was making a mistake. 

Malcolm Brogdon: Rough night from the floor. Chalk it up to rust. 

TOP PLAYS

ONE TAKE KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- Joe Mazzulla and timeouts are /still an issue (but he doesn’t see it that way)

This might be the most played-out storyline of the season, but it remains a storyline because we continue to watch teams make big runs without the Celtics stopping the momentum at all. I think that's a mistake, but Mazzulla does not.

“I love it,” Mazzulla said when asked about letting his team play through opponent runs. 

“I think you have to go through that as a team and you have to build an awareness for your team as to what's going on,” he said. “Sometimes I like the fact that we have to execute through a run instead of calling a timeout for a run so it's a feel thing and there are times where you're gonna have to do it. But in order for us to be a great team, we have to handle those situations.” 

It’s hard to argue that in some respects. He’s not wrong. 

“Quite honestly, I've watched a lot of timeouts where you call one and then nothing good happens after the timeout,” he said. “So it’s a 50/50 shot that the timeout is going to work.”

Honestly, I’m not even sure if the timeout itself does anything to stop a run, either. But it at least gets the guys to calm down on the sidelines and regroup a little bit, but what I don't buy is the mentality that “sometimes it doesn’t work, therefore it’s not worth doing.” 

Personally, I’d rather take the 50/50 shot that it stops the run because that means it’s going to work half the time. 

“I think it’s something personal,” Mazzulla said. “I want our team to grow, to build that awareness to understand how the game's going and to figure out ways to execute out of it on both ends of the floor. So there's definitely a time where you have to call it, but the timeout doesn't guarantee anything, except two minutes of rest, I guess.”

That's important, too. 

I see the value in letting guys play through things, but I think Mazzulla needs to give a little on this. Sometimes teams can just need a break to get a reminder of what they're doing right or wrong. Sometimes things can cascade a little out of control and a coach can use the timeout to refocus guys and get them back on the right path. 

For Mazzulla it's not only a chance to see if his team can figure it, it's also a demonstration of trust. 

"It challenges us no only for the situation at hand in front of us, but also the challenges to be better down the line," Brown said. "That's a lot of trust from our head coach that he instills in our players and then us to figure it out. So to be honest, that's what you want as a player. You want that relationship with your head coach that he trusts you out there, that's you'll figure it out, and for the most part we have this year. We just got to keep it up and continue to just set our bar at a higher standard."

This is all compelling evidence of the value of playing through the adversity, but there is a middle ground. I believe in the value of guys figuring things out on their own, but I also believe in the value of guys being shaken from their slumber and pointed in the right directions. Everyone needs that sometimes. 

Next up: The Celtics finish their road trip in Chicago on Monday night