The world works in funny ways sometimes.
If Jrue Holiday had been available, he might have drawn the defensive assignment on Kevin Porter Jr., and instead of racking up 24 points through three quarters, Porter might not have gotten hot at all.
Or maybe if the Celtics had staggered Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford like they normally do on back-to-backs, Porzingis would have been at the rim to deter a lot of the drives the Clippers made to rack up 78 points on 60% shooting with 4:18 to go in the third quarter.
But they weren’t available. The Clippers are on a rare stretch of four games in five nights due to game cancellations during the L.A. fires, so they decided to sit most of their team. Boston took advantage and got some key guys a breather on the front end of their own back-to-back.
And, as usual, this didn’t make life any easier for the Celtics. Porter was one of three Clippers averaging around nine or 10 points this season who put up 20-plus points in this game. He normally averages around nine shots a game, but he cashed in on his opportunity in this game to put up 21. Derrick Jones Jr. averages 7.8 shots per game but got 20 up, taking advantage of getting 20 more minutes than usual.
So with the Celtics putting up enough points to normally have a lead but not getting the stops they needed to actually earn it, Joe Mazzulla broke the emergency glass and inserted his defensive specialist, Jaden Springer.
“I think one of the best things you could do in this league is to just deliver when your name is called, regardless of what it is,” Mazzulla said after the overtime win. “It's a credit to him and the work ethic that he has. I thought it was his defense, his physicality, his presence changed the game for us.”
It only took 1:18 for Springer to make an impact getting a straight-up steal off Porter’s drive attempt. Jones was his next victim 46 seconds later. The Clippers went from an 82-77 lead to a 96-89 hole in about eight minutes. Springer got two more steals in that stretch.
“He’s just got an innate skill to impact the game with his physicality and his defense,” Mazzulla said. “I thought that's what the game needed at the time. I thought their guards were a little too comfortable, and he has an ability to really change the game that way.”
Springer was like an attack dog breaking free of his leash. He was impossible to screen, sticking to his defensive assignment and being physical with only a minimum of fouling. The Clippers went from shooting 10-13 (77%) at the rim before Springer checked in to 10-17 (59%) after. By making their path to the paint more difficult, Springer allowed time for the help to do its job and prevent some of the baskets LA had been making.
“That was tough, that was tough,” Jaylen Brown told reporters, using the modern slang to equate “tough” to “impressive.” Though, it works both ways. “As the season goes on, you need every guy on your team, and that is just a testament to him and his work ethic … Defensively, we weren't at our best. Kevin Porter was getting the best of us. … Jaden just came in, hawked the ball, gave us some energy on defense, and helped us get the win.”
The energy he gave his teammates was the energy he sucked from the souls of the gassed Clippers.
“You can see they stopped drawing up plays for him a little bit, keep him off the ball,” Springer said. “You can read the body language like he's frustrated. So you can see stuff like that.”
It would be easy for Springer to let his situation get the best of him. Not only is he not playing much, but he’s also the only guy in any trade rumors for Boston right now. Any talk of the trade deadline and the Celtics involves only him, his contract, and how much money the team will save by moving him. Springer is probably going to become a tax casualty, which means he’ll have to make his defensive impact somewhere else while the Celtics finish the journey without him.
Still, Springer was ready to give the Celtics exactly what they needed in that moment.
“It’s super impressive,” Jayson Tatum said. “It's just the ultimate professional, right? Never know when you're gonna play, the game is not going the way it’s supposed to, what we expect. And Joe calls your number to come shut somebody down and give us a spark off the bench. And he did that.”
The Celtics may have found a way to win without Springer, but the game wasn’t trending that way at all. He made a big difference and it gave Boston their first consecutive wins in 20 days. He even hit a couple of big 3-pointers along the way.
“It feels great,” Springer said. “We’re here every day working, so to be able to see the benefits of the work you put in is a great feeling, especially with all my teammates, my guys cheering me on. It's amazing.”
