BSJ Game Report: Hawks 119, Celtics 115 (OT) - C's blow it in the fourth, lose in OT

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

IN A NUTSHELL

The Celtics spread out the scoring in the first but the defense was the story, holding the Hawks to 24 points and turning them over six times on their way to a 12-point lead. That disappeared in a disaster of a second quarter where they missed all eight 3-pointers they took and were outscored 31-15. Their malaise continued into the third, but they re-took the lead thanks to a huge run over the second half of the period. They traded runs early in the fourth but had the game won in the final seconds until poor execution gave Atlanta an opening to force OT. The Celtics had chances, but couldn't get the stops they needed or capitalize on the openings they got.

Box Score

HEADLINES

- Disaster finish: Forgetting for a moment how they got there, the Celtics had set up a perfect end-of-game scenario. They had both timeouts to use, they got a quick two-for-one basket when the game was tied. They even got a gift of a technical foul by Trae Young to go up three with the ball and 20 seconds left. They then unleashed a series of bad decisions and bad shots, tangled in with some bad luck, to g

- Inconsistency: They came out defending well, getting points in transition and putting points on the board even when 3-pointers weren’t falling. It felt like this was going to be another easy win that would calm some nerves. And then they botched two easy fast breaks and it all fell apart. And then in the third quarter they turned it back on and got the lead back up to 10 in the fourth quarter. And then they gave it back. Runs are always going to happen, but the Celtics are not just giving up runs. They go from looking like world champs to looking like they want to draft Cooper Flagg and back again in the same game nowadays. 

- Where were the stars? Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown finished with fine raw stat lines (Brown had 24 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists while Tatum had 23/8/7), but not only were their percentages garbage (both shot 33.3% overall and 2-9 from 3), their fourth quarters were terrible (Brown had seven points on 3-12 shooting while Tatum was 0-3 from the field). They're supposed to get the job done in these situations. 

TURNING POINT 

Jrue Holiday’s turnover with :14 on the clock turned a lock of a win into a loss. 

My initial reaction was to just take the layup and go up five. We can argue that his momentum was going the wrong way and that De’Andre Hunter’s momentum was going toward the basket. 

My second reaction is to just hold the ball and take the foul.

My third reaction is if you’re going to make that pass, then make it. 

My fourth reaction is that Brown probably still could have caught that. 

THINGS I LIKED

- The first quarter: It wasn’t perfect, but the Celtics defended well, ran pretty good offense, got out in transition, and did all the things they needed to do to play good basketball and get a win. I was ready for them to keep rolling with it, but they obviously had other ideas.

- Payton Pritchard: He was on the path to being the hero of this game. He was hitting huge shots in the fourth to keep Boston in front. If they’d held on to win this game, one of the headlines would have been something about Sixth Man of the Year. He was hitting everything in the fourth. He scored half of Boston’s 26 points. He was so good, I thought maybe they should have kept feeding him instead of letting Tatum or Brown do their thing at the end. He finished with 20 points on 7-12 shooting (4-8 3pt).

- Luke Kornet: I thought he played really well. He had 17 points and six offensive rebounds. I’m surprised he didn’t get more time in the fourth.

- Derrick White: He hid two 3-pointers in the overtime that I thought might become the story of the game. He still didn’t have a great shooting night from 3, but aside from his shooting, I think he played well, and I think he’s on the verge of these shots falling more regularly.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE

- Fourth quarter execution: No, not the Jrue Holiday stuff. The next Celtics basket after Kornet’s tip-in with 3:39 left in the game was Brown’s step-back with :29 left to break a 100-all tie. We know what happened after that, but a 3:10 stretch with only two Derrick White free throws on the board is unacceptable. This game shouldn’t have come down to those final seconds or overtime. 

“It's 85-75 and they call a timeout,” Joe Mazzulla said. “And then, from that standpoint, it ends up being, what was it? They went on a 10-2 maybe or something. (That’s) just as debilitating to a game as your late-game execution.”

- Jrue Holiday’s end to regulation: I’ve already gone over the turnover. The foul on Young with Boston up two and in the penalty is inexcusable. Both he and Mazzulla say that wasn’t intentional but I don’t see how they can say that with straight faces. He reached out with both hands and grabbed Young’s arm as soon as he got over half court. I think Holiday simply forgot the score and thought they were up three. 

- Neemias Queta: I think he had some good moments early protecting the rim, but I think he was awful in overtime. The Celtics were given a gift when Jalen Johnson missed two free throws with Atlanta up one and 13 seconds left in overtime. Queta missed the rebound and Atlanta grabbed it, icing the game. 

- The second quarter: The Celtics comically botched a pair of 3-on-1s and I immediately thought this had the potential to spiral out of control. Suddenly, the Celtics got deflated, they stopped playing with pace, they started jogging, and their whole lead vanished. The Celtics scored 15 points and looked lifeless. The game was lost there more than anywhere because the Celtics should have finished those two fast breaks and gone up 16 and changed the whole dynamic of the game from there. 

- Jaylen Brown: I don’t know what’s going on with him. Something is off. He hasn’t been talking to the media, he hasn’t had his head on straight for extended stretches of games recently, and he looks like he’s on edge on the floor sometimes. He let out some loud frustration with a teammate against Orlando and he was talking to himself at times in this game. Something isn’t right with Brown and I have no clue what it is. 

HIGHLIGHTS

ONE TAKE KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- This stretch is the opposite of last season

The Celtics always found their way out of messes like this. It’s almost as if last year’s championship run was a scripted show where everything works out and this season is some weird reality show. 

I’m at a complete loss to explain how poorly they executed in the fourth. I have no clue why Holiday, a generally dependable guy, would make two terrible mistakes in that situation. I can’t understand why Tatum and Brown are incapable of closing games out right now. 

This game should have been put on ice at four different junctures: The beginning of the second quarter, the end of the third (instead Young banked in a 3-pointer to cut the lead to five going into the fourth), midway through the fourth (the run Mazzulla was talking about) and the end of the fourth. 

I don’t care that I’m not giving the Hawks credit here. Yes, they were resilient and they didn’t quit, but they also didn’t stop Boston once without the Celtics being fully complicit in their own demise. 

I’m still not going to overreact to stuff like this, but this loss really sucks. They flat-out blew this game in a way last year’s team never would have. There was no composure and no execution. 

Next up: The Celtics head back out west, starting with a 5 p.m. MLK Day matchup at Golden State