Jalen Bridges, a two-way contract player for the Suns last season, showed himself "ready to play" on Sunday, according to Celtics coach Matt Reynolds.
Jalen Bridges, a two-way contract player for the Suns last season, showed himself "ready to play" on Sunday, according to Celtics coach Matt Reynolds.Rick Scuteri/Associated Press
LAS VEGAS — Charles Bassey tallied 22 points and 13 rebounds to help the Celtics to a 94-81 win over the Knicks on Sunday.
Boston (2-0) will face the Heat on Monday night.
The Celtics made just 5 of 27 3-pointers, but relied on their defense that came up with 14 steals and forced 22 turnovers.
“I’d say the defensive pressure was probably what helped our offense the most,” coach Matt Reynolds said. “I think our offense kind of sputtered a little bit in the halfcourt but we had 14 steals. That kind of triggered the fast breaks, whether it be a corner three, dunk, lob, whatever.”
Observations from the game:
⋅ Jalen Bridges scored 16 points after being added to the starting lineup. The 6-foot-8 forward was a two-way contract player for the Suns last season and had some promising moments on Sunday. In a stretch of about four minutes, he hit a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer, converted a tough reverse layup, and made a driving hook shot.
Then in the third quarter, he showed off his athleticism on defense, rising to gobble up a Knicks alley-oop attempt that ignited a fast break and led to a successful Jordan Walsh alley-oop at the other end.
“I saw a guy that’s ready to play,” Reynolds said. “It’s not easy to do that — to watch, sit on the bench, and then get inserted into the starting lineup and then just fill a role. I don’t think he was out there trying to do too much. I think he does exactly what you expect him to do. He’s a pro.”
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⋅ The Celtics’ defensive pressure bothered the Knicks in the opening quarter, and Baylor Scheierman was at the center of the attack. The second-year wing had three steals in the opening quarter, including one that led to a Kendall Brown dunk. Scheierman scored or assisted on the Celtics’ first 11 points, including a 3-pointer that came from the edge of the midcourt logo. He missed his next six 3-pointers, however.
“Obviously, I can’t control if shots are going in or not,” Scheierman said. “I’m shooting to make it, not to miss. I didn’t shoot it well again from 3, but I impacted a lot of different areas, had a couple steals, couple offensive fouls, so being able to impact the game in whatever means necessary is a good trait to have.”
⋅ Bassey followed up his 14-point, 11-rebound performance in Friday’s game strong Sunday. During his first stint he registered a pair of blocks, converted a 3-point play inside, and out-muscled the Knicks for several rebounds. During one third-quarter sequence, he beat two Knicks to an offensive rebound before bulldozing to the basket for a layup. About a minute later he threw down a one-handed alley-oop.
Bassey has been slowed by injuries during his four-year NBA career, but also has shown he can be a capable contributor at the highest level when healthy. Bassey said he is fully healthy, and a league source said he has piqued the interest of several teams this week.
“I think I’m auditioning for the rest of the NBA, and it’s also a good opportunity for me to be a Celtic,” Bassey said.
⋅ First-round pick Hugo Gonzalez and two-way contract player Miles Norris sat out. Gonzalez’s Spanish League season concluded just over two weeks ago, and on Saturday Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said that Gonzalez would likely play just one of the games of this back-to-back set. Gonzalez and Norris are expected to play Monday.
⋅ During the regular season, Reynolds is tasked with helping the team determine whether to challenge calls. He had a strong record this past season. That is not his role with this group, of course, but old habits die hard. When Max Shulga was called for a foul after blocking a Tyler Kolek runner, Reynolds all but dashed toward the back of the bench, where the staffers were in charge of monitoring replays. They waved off Reynolds on that play, but Boston successfully challenged an out of bounds call later in the first half.
⋅ The NBA’s Board of Governors is scheduled to meet this week, but a league source said Sunday that the approval of Bill Chisholm’s bid to purchase the Celtics is not on the agenda. The source said ownership votes rarely take place in person, and that this vote will likely take place soon, once the transaction is closed.
⋅ Newly acquired Celtics Georges Niang, Luka Garza, and Josh Minott attended Sunday’s game, along with returning big man Xavier Tillman.
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.