BSJ Game Report: Warriors 118, Celtics 112 - Physical Dubs D, late rebounding woes, doom Celtics

Everything you need to know about the Celtics loss to the Warriors, with BSJ insight and analysis

IN A NUTSHELL

Derrick White started out blistering hot, scoring 12 of Boston’s 24 first-quarter points while the C’s defense held Golden State to 19. The Warriors got hot themselves answering with a run to start the second and take a six-point lead. They used another one later to go up 11 at half. Boston cut that to one thanks to a 17-point quarter from Jayson Tatum. Boston went up seven in the middle of the fourth but Steph Curry scored 10 points in the final 5:28 to put Boston away.

Box Score

HEADLINES

- Gotta rebound: The Celtics gave up seven offensive rebounds and 10 second chance points to the Warriors in the fourth quarter. The Celtics did everything but rebound and it cost them their fourth-quarter lead. 

- Warriors defense: I questioned whether their defense would hold up against the best offense in the league and it did. They frustrated the Celtics in the first half, holding them to just 37 shot attempts. Boston got up 52 in the second half, which is where they need to be to succeed. 

- Bench battle: The Warriors got 49 points out of their bench while Boston only got 24. Buddy Hield, Kyle Anderson, and Jonathan Kuminga all hit some monster shots. 

TURNING POINT 

White fouled Curry on a 3-point attempt with Boston up 95-90 at the 5:28 mark. The Celtics challenged the play, and it looked like they had a chance to win it, but the call was upheld. It kick-started a 14-4 Warriors run that gave them the lead for good. 

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE

- The first-half frustration: The Warriors blitzed and trapped and played the kind of gritty defense that actually was reminiscent of Boston’s playoff run. Were there fouls? Yes. But the Warriors dared the refs to blow the whistle and the Celtics to deal with it. Neither of those things happened much in the first half. 

- Lack of rebounding: Sometimes giving up an offensive rebound is unavoidable. But giving up seven in the final quarter and three in the final 3:42 has to also include a lack of focus. There were chances to get stops, including two on missed Curry 3-pointers in a two-point game with about a minute-and-a-half to go, but Boston missed on them. 

- Jrue Holiday: Tough night for him. He shot 3-11 and 0-6 from 3. He had a corner 3 with Boston up one and 4:35 to go that I feel like could have changed the game. If he’d hit that, it would have been an answer to a Curry 3 and it would have lit the building up. He also looked lost on defense too often, including allowing a Curry backdoor layup that ended up being when the Warrior went ahead for good.

- Luke Kornet: This was a rough one for him. If the Celtics were fully healthy, he would have been a DNP.

- Jayson Tatum’s first half: All four of his turnovers came in the first half. He looked rushed and frustrated by the Warriors defense. He only had eight points on 2-7 shooting and the shots he took were not exactly in his comfort zone. 

THINGS I LIKED

- Tatum’s second half: 24 points, on 8-13 shooting (4-8 3pt) and 4-5 from the line. However, I will say that the energy of the game changed in the fourth quarter when he came back in. So I shouldn’t even say I liked his whole second half. 

- Derrick White: He started out hot with 12 of Boston’s first 14 points. He cooled off a bit after that but then sprang back to life in the third when Boston cut the lead to one. 

- Neemias Queta: He was certainly not perfect. In fact, he was part of the problem with the rebounding late in the game. However, he was part of a big energy boost in the fourth that helped Boston build a lead and appear to be on their way to a win. He’s more switchable than I realized coming into the season, and he had some possessions where his size bothered Curry. He has a lot to learn, but he’s helping in a lot of ways as well. 

- Eddie Paladino milking the moment: Normally, the opposing coach is quickly introduced to no reaction. But knowing that fans were ready to boo Steve Kerr, C's PA man Eddie Paladino decided to give the intro an extra beat so fans could feel satisfied. 

That man is a pro. 

HIGHLIGHTS

ONE TAKE KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- Whenever you have a thought about the Celtics being dramatic in any way, just forget it. 

The Celtics are Maximus in the early part of Gladiator when he kills easily and methodically and then screams at the crowd “ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?”

I know that might be weird to say after a loss, but the point is that fans watching a live event want something more than the straightforward. Fans want some spice in their food. 

But the Celtics are not spicy. They are not dramatic. They were not participants in the Grant Williams drama last week, and they were not participants in the revenge storyline going up against Steve Kerr. 

“People want me to be louder, people want me to be meaner, whatever,” Tatum said after the game. “The thing about Jayson is like, I’m always going to do what the f--k I wanna do and approach things how I want to approach it. And how I feel is sincere to who I am as a person … I’m always going to react, respond, and approach things the way that I want to.”

And THAT is as spicy as Tatum is going to get … unless you’re an official who didn’t call a foul on his drives. That's the one place where he’s louder and meaner. Other than that, forget it. 

So whenever you feel like there's an opportunity to send a message of some sort … maybe for the Celtics to step outside themselves … just flush that thought. Even if they have a lingering feeling about something, they're not going to give into it. 

I suppose I can throw one asterisk on this take, though. Maye Jaylen Brown would have gotten a little spicy with it. He’s the only one of these guys who will outwardly carry a grudge sometimes. 

Teams will often mirror their star player’s personality, and Tatum is as low-key as it gets. 

Next up: The Celtics host the Brooklyn Nets on Friday night