Jayson Tatum had 19 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists to help the Celtics roll past the Hornets, 114-93, on Wednesday night at TD Garden to improve to 3-0 this preseason. Derrick White added 17 points and Payton Pritchard dished out 11 assists. Boston forced 26 turnovers.
Observations from the game:
▪ Mitchell Robinson is an elite defender and rebounder, but the Celtics are looking for him to be an asset as a scorer close to the rim. In the first half there were signs of his developing connection with Tatum. After Robinson converted a tip-in, Tatum drove and lofted a nice pass to him for an alley-oop. Soon after, Tatum spun through the lane and set Robinson up with an alley-oop layup. Early in the third quarter, the two connected for yet another alley-oop slam.
▪ Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla generally cautions onlookers not to read into his preseason starting lineups, but it feels notable that he has used the same first five in the last two games: Tatum, Paul George, Jordan Walsh, Robinson, and Derrick White.
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Tatum, White, and George will start, and Robinson makes sense in this spot because it will help keep him off the foul line since the Celtics will not be in the penalty. The fifth slot has been up for debate. Walsh gives the Celtics an athletic, defensive-minded wing who does not need the ball in his hands.
▪ George’s first shot was a 3-pointer from the left corner that was blocked. That was the start of a grisly offensive half. He missed his next three shots from a similar spot, including one airball. He snapped an 0 for 6 skid by converting a 3-pointer but followed that by barely grazing the rim on another 3-point attempt. It’s not cause for alarm, but he wasn’t at his best.
▪ The Hornets were missing most of their offensive firepower, including Kon Knueppel, Coby White and Grayson Allen. Regardless, the Celtics’ defense remained dominant. Boston registered three steals in the first three minutes and forced 14 first-half turnovers. A few ended careless offensive possessions by the Hornets, but in general, the Celtics appear to be in lockstep at that end of the floor.
▪ Just the preseason? Don’t tell Mazzulla, who challenged a foul call against Tatum and successfully got it overturned to an illegal screen.
▪ There were more signs center Neemias Queta (16 points on 7-for-11 shooting) is looking to expand his range this season. Queta airballed a 3-pointer in Boston’s win over the 76ers on Saturday. In the first half against the Hornets, he missed a 3-pointer from the top of the key that at least touched the rim this time. But simply the threat of shooting might be an asset. Later, the Hornets closed out on Queta in the left corner, and he showed a pump-fake, capitalized on the slight advantage and drew a shooting foul as he spun through the lane. He also converted a 20-foot jumper from a similar spot later in the half but badly missed a 3-pointer from the top of the key late in the third.
It’ll be interesting to see if these long-range attempts are just preseason experimentation or something more. Queta’s most impressive moment came closer to the basket, when he roared down the lane for a massive one-handed slam early in the fourth.
▪ Queta and Robinson shared the floor in double-big lineups in each half. It’s an intriguing pairing since, despite Queta’s attempts, neither is a threat to stretch the floor. But their size, versatility and athleticism could make the Celtics’ defensive lineups particularly fearsome. Robinson, it should be noted, went 2 for 2 from the foul line.
▪ White struggled through one of the worst shooting seasons of his career last season, so his second quarter burst was at least an encouraging sign. He was 5 for 5 from the field in the period, for 13 of his 17 points.