BSJ Game Report: Celtics 108, Wizards 96 - Jaylen Brown's 31 leads C's in ugly win

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

IN A NUTSHELL

They started slow but the passing picked up later in the first and Boston took a two-point lead into the second. Malcolm Brogdon helped fuel a big Washington run, but Boston answered later in the quarter. Still the Wizards led by two at half. The ugly play continued in the third but Xavier Tillman injected some energy into the team and fueled a run to give Boston a 3-point lead going into the fourth. Boston went inside down the stretch and strung together enough baskets to win by double digits.

Box Score

HEADLINES

- U-G-L-Y: This was a gross game. Shout out to you if you made it through the whole thing because there was no reason to stick with this one. They came out attacking in isolation rather than moving the ball, so you could tell right away that this wasn’t going to be the normal offensive night. They couldn't shoot, they turned the ball over a ton, and then we had to watch the Wizards try to play offense. I’m proud of myself for keeping my dinner down. 

- Tatum’s OFF night: He couldn't shoot at all from the outside. He was 0-10 but some of those misses were so bad, I swear they counted twice. He did actually hit some shots when they switched to attacking to close the game out, but the rest of the night was one of his worst that we’ve seen.

- Tillman’s energy boost: He played five garbage time minutes in the last five games, but in this one he came in in the third quarter and gave Boston a defensive boost. He immediately blocked a shot, got a steal a short time later, and injected a little energy that Boston didn’t have until he checked in.

- Cup win: For those who care, this win moves Boston into a tie with Atlanta at the top of Group C. If they win big Friday in Chicago, they could still be alive in the NBA Cup.

TURNING POINT

Tillman checked in with 3:18 to go in the third and Boston down one. The Celtics immediately went on a quick 8-2 run to take a five point lead. They didn’t pull away until the very end, but they also never trailed again after Tillman’s block led to a Sam Hauser 3-pointer.

THINGS I LIKED

- Xavier Tillman: Let’s just keep this train rolling. It’s tough being in Tillman’s position. But he deserves some shine by staying ready and coming in when the rest of the team is playing terribly to change the energy of the game. 

- Jrue Holiday: He didn’t put up a monster stat line but he clearly came to play. He was the only one out there hitting at a decent clip (3-6 overall, 2-5 from 3, 8-8 from the line). They probably should have run more offense through him early on. 

- Sam Hauser and Payton Pritchard: They provided some nice sparks off the bench early on, hitting shots to keep Boston close when no one else was hitting a thing.

- Luke Kornet: He started the second half and he was clearly the better center option in this game. 

“Luke is just a ball of energy,” Holiday said. “He makes plays that don't show up on the stat sheet, but when you're out there playing with him, it's like he's just trying to run through a brick wall and you wanna do that with him.”

The best moment of the night belonged to Kornet when he switched onto Bub Carrington who then traveled. Kornet turned to the bench and celebrated as if to say “look how shook he was that I switched on to him.” Pretty funny. 

- Jaylen Brown: It wasn’t efficient at all, but on a night like this, a 31-point, 11-rebound, five-assist performance was massively important. He was 3-4 in the fourth to help close the door.

“He was great,” Holiday said. “Him being him, picking up our offense when we needed it and doing it in JB fashion. Sometimes it looks so easy that you don’t even realize how many points he has. So, appreciate him just going out there, playing hard, and all the pressure and weight on him, he takes that on.”

- The fourth quarter: Boston shot 11-21 and just 2-9 from 3. They went inside instead of leaning on shots that weren’t falling all night. Derrick White was the only guy to hit from deep in the quarter (2-2). 

Everyone else was going inside. They actually put up 33 points in the fourth on 52.4% shooting on an otherwise horrific offensive night. 

THINGS I DIDN'T LIKE

- Neemias Queta: He was bad in this game … bad enough that Joe Mazzulla went with Luke Kornet to start the third quarter. Queta is continuing to make some of the same mistakes on defense, which isn’t the best sign in the world. Also, I think his athleticism is slightly overrated. He should have finished a couple of offensive plays but he couldn't because he wasn’t strong or athletic enough to play through the contact.

- Jayson Tatum: He wasn’t alone shooting airballs (Brown had one of the worst I’ve seen), but he was missing BADLY. I didn’t like how his night started offensively, but to his credit, he did start passing he finished with eight assists. 

- Turnovers: You know when the Celtics aren’t at their best because they have some really bad turnovers. They were very sloppy, especially in the first half, giving the ball up on easy inbounds or entry passes. 

HIGHLIGHTS

TWO TAKES KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- What are you gonna do? 

Seriously. I can’t sit here and rip them for the effort because they won by 12. I can’t rip them for the shooting because they ditched the 3-pointers down the stretch. I can’t rip them for the defense because they held Washington to 45 points in the second half on 43% shooting. 

This game felt ugly and gross, but they did just enough for long enough to make the ending look fine. They're 13-3. Am I really going to get worked up over style points? 

They weren’t at their best, probably because they spent the day at the White House yesterday and it took their focus away from the task at hand. They have played down to the competition a bit to start the season, but it has only cost them one game. 

This was gross, but it was also fine. 

What are you gonna do?

- It's HILARIOUS that Celtics-Bulls might come down to point differential again.

This is the exact same situation Boston was in last year when they went hack-a-DRUMMOND to run up the score and advance. I'm actually kind of giddy that we might get to see that stupidity again. 

You wanna play rough? Okay ...

Next up: The Celtics return home to host the Timberwolves Sunday afternoon.