BSJ Game Report: Celtics 119, Grizzlies 109 - C's shooters bury Memphis under barrage of 3-pointers

Everything you need to know about the Celtics' win over the Memphis Grizzlies with BSJ insight and analysis

IN A NUTSHELL

The Grizzlies built an early 9-point lead by attacking the rim and scoring off Celtics turnovers. The Celtics did themselves no favors in the quarter either, missing a bunch of shots at the rim and fouling a lot. Things flipped in the second as Boston’s 3-pointers started to fall in bunches. They got up by as much as 15 but Memphis made it a game again with a big early third-quarter run to tie things up. Once they did, it became a back-and-forth battle until the 3-pointers started falling again and Boston pulled away.

Box Score

HEADLINES

3-point shooting vs. attacking the rim: If there was ever a 3>2 game, it was this one. The Grizzlies outscored Boston 60-34 in points in the paint, but Boston outscored Memphis 63-36 from 3. The Grizzlies actually made more shots (42 to 39) but lost. Their free throw shooting (13-21, 61.9%) didn’t help at all.     

Rebounding was the difference: The Celtics out-rebounded Memphis by 20, but it was the 14-3 offensive rebounding advantage that really made the difference. Boston got 5 offensive rebounds in the fourth quarter alone, giving them four more shots in the quarter. Two of those resulted in 3-pointers. Boston had 13 second-chance points, 7 of them came in the fourth quarter.

Scoring balance: The Celtics played 9 guys, 8 of them scored double figures. Only Luke Kornet (2 points) was below double figures -- BUT -- he was a team-high +10, so let’s give him an asterisk on this one.  

TURNING POINT

Things started to turn with Payton Pritchard’s 3-pointer at the 9:29 mark to retake the lead, 88-87. The Celtics went on a 17-6 run after that, and the energy really ramped up when Sam Hauser hit his sixth 3-pointer of the night with 8:32 to go. 

SEVEN UP

Sam Hauser: The timing of his resurgence has been perfect. He tied a career-high with 6 3-pointers and was four off his career-high scoring. I loved it when Joe Mazzulla started him against Detroit, and since then he’s been lights-out, going 20-38 from deep in 4 games. 

“I think he’s getting the confidence just because that’s what players go through in the league is navigating the ups and downs,” Mazzulla said. “With him, why I was comfortable going back to him was just his work ethic that he brings every day. And the second piece is, he gives our other guys confidence because of his ability to move without the basketball, his ability to create crossmatches, his ability to put two on the ball and allow others to play. So he brings an intangible dynamic to our offense.”

Now if only he can defend without fouling. 

Derrick White: He had a really rough start, but he pulled out of it to have another incredible overall game.

“I was just really frustrated about the turnovers too. I just wanted to stay with it,” White said. “(Jayson Tatum) talked to me after a timeout and was like ‘law of averages,’ so just hearing that and just try to stay with it and stay aggressive, and just see one go down and go from there.”

He finished with 23 points and 10 assists, once again picking the team up without both its other point guards. 

Payton Pritchard: He shot 4-7, all from 3, and his energy changed the game early on, coming in at the end of the first quarter to stabilize a struggling Celtics team.

Al Horford: Hit hit 3 huge 3-pointers in a perfect-shooting fourth to lead everyone with 11 points in the quarter. Aside from one bad foul, he was great down the stretch, combining with White for 21 points in the final quarter. 

Grant and Robert Williams: I’m combining them for coming down with a combined 5 fourth quarter offensive rebounds and 11 rebounds overall to close the game. Their efforts on the glass at both ends was pivotal to the Celtics making sure the Grizzlies only got one shot and then extending their own possessions. 

Mike Muscala: 10 points and 5 rebounds in 16:41 is a nice game for the new guy. He was 2-5 from 3, so he’s doing exactly what he was brought here to do. 

NONE DOWN

This was a solidly played game by everyone. Of course, you’re probably thinking to yourself “wait, what about Tatum?” That's coming up in a minute. 

TOP PLAYS

ONE TAKE KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- Jayson Tatum didn’t shoot well, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t play well.

Tatum shot 3-16, 1-8 from deep, and only scored 16 points. The Grizzlies did a great job defending him. Dillon Brooks was very physical with him, but even though he shot 9-12 from the free throw line, Tatum probably feels like he could have shot twice as many. But as shorthanded as Boston was, the Grizzlies made it a point to make someone other than Tatum beat them. 

But the attention paid to Tatum allowed for a lot of openings that guys took advantage of. 

“Tatum’s not going to get enough credit for the way he’s played, and he’s constantly being judged by the results,” Mazzulla said. “But I thought, last game he had 41, he did a good job scoring. Two of the last three games, he’s done an amazing job of managing the game. He’s managing the game by continuing to play defense, managing the game by involving himself but not looking to score and making the right play. Superstars don’t get the credit they deserve when they do that and so, credit to him. And I think that allows our guys to play with confidence and makes our team even harder to guard.”

He’s 100% on point there. We’ll look at this game and say “wow, they beat Memphis without Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart, or Malcolm Brogdon and Tatum shooting like a hungover college kid, that's amazing!” But if you look closely, you see Tatum’s impact.

Credit him for only taking 16 shots. His usage rate this season is 32.9%, but it was 27.2% in this game. In the fourth quarter, it was only 10.5%, lower than everyone except Muscala. White, Hauser, Horford, and Grant Williams were all over 20%. They're the guys who closed the game out. 

So he took a step back to let others shine. He didn’t try to strap on a cape and declare “IT’S TATUM TIME!” 

I talk a lot about listening to the game, and this is a great example of a guy doing that. Tatum listened to the game and gave his team what it needed, which was a couple of assists and some good defense and then occupy defenders so other guys could finish things off. That, to me, is playing well regardless of how you shoot.

Next up: The Celtics travel to Milwaukee for a Tuesday night game against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks