It was another rough night for Luka Doncic, but this time in Lakers purple and gold, as the Celtics captured a 111-101 victory Saturday.
It was another rough night for Luka Doncic, but this time in Lakers purple and gold, as the Celtics captured a 111-101 victory Saturday.Barry Chin/Globe Staff
Beat L.A.?
Oh, the Celtics did, by a 111-101 score Saturday night in a regular-season matchup that had so much buzz that you would have thought it came with a trophy presentation at the end.
And they would, without a doubt, should ABC and the NBA’s daydream of a Celtics-Lakers duel in the NBA Finals somehow come to fruition in June.
That’s the biggest of many takeaways from the Celtics’ emboldening victory at TD Garden, just the third loss for the Lakers in 15 games — and first in their last eight — since they were gifted Luka Doncic by the punch-line Mavericks on February 1.
The Lakers, even with Doncic and LeBron James working as a dynamic duo, are not in the class of the defending champs. Not in the same phylum, either.
They do not have the team — talented, selfless, well-rounded players who thrive within their particular roles — to match the Celtics, and I’m not even sure their duo is more dynamic than Boston’s.
Should the Celtics advance to the Finals — and we’re not dismissing the legit-as-legit-can-be Cavaliers here, but merely daydreaming on what a championship matchup might look like — they will not have to worry about the team they took down Saturday night.
The upcoming heavyweight bout at the Garden on Wednesday versus the Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder will be far more telling, and we’ll touch on them more a few paragraphs from now.
This victory over the Lakers is worth savoring for many reasons, not the least of which being that it should at least temporarily thwart the national media’s anointment of LeBron, Luka, and an Assortment of Decent but Mismatched Parts as the team to beat.
(I suppose it should be noted somewhere that there was a decent contingent of Lakers fans at the Garden Saturday night. But they were mostly seated in the upper bowl, with 18 banners in their sightlines.)
Jayson Tatum powers to the rim for a mighty slam during his stellar effort in Saturday night's win over the Lakers.
Jayson Tatum powers to the rim for a mighty slam during his stellar effort in Saturday night's win over the Lakers.Barry Chin/Globe Staff
Jayson Tatum (40 points, 12 rebounds, 8 assists, and the best all-around player in this game) and Jaylen Brown (31 points, a couple of a crucial, late no-no-yes! makes, and defense on Doncic that was so relentless that it seemed personal) were the most dominating tandem we have seen on the parquet since, oh, Derrick White and Payton Pritchard teamed up for 84 points and 19 3-pointers roughly a week ago. Sure is fun to watch superstars that are committed to excellence on both ends of the court.
And yet the most satisfying Celtics performance was not delivered by Tatum or Brown. That honor must go to Al Horford, who at 38 years old still has an uncanny knack for playing his best in the biggest or most anticipated games.
It was fascinating to see how Lakers coach JJ Redick attacked the Celtics, given that during his time as a broadcaster/podcaster, he was one of their greatest advocates. It turned out that his approach was to try to isolate Horford in defensive mismatches against James and Doncic.
Said approach did not work. It may have even backfired.
Horford’s gracious demeanor sometimes masks his deep personal pride, and such a challenge inevitably fires him up and brings out his best. On Saturday, that best included 14 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, a block, and a sneaker to Doncic’s forehead after a two-handed slam in the first quarter.
If you didn’t know he was 38, you might have assumed that was a 28-year-old prime-of-career player that the Lakers were foolishly attempting to pick apart. Man, did he hold up defensively. Don’t mess with Ageless Al.
Joe Mazzula thoroughly enjoyed his team's effort, and execution, in Saturday night's win over the Lakers.
Joe Mazzula thoroughly enjoyed his team's effort, and execution, in Saturday night's win over the Lakers.Barry Chin/Globe Staff
Know what else was really fun about this game? That Joe Mazzulla coached like it mattered more than most. Tatum played 45 minutes, 37 seconds, and Brown 41:37. Horford played 37:20, 14 seconds shy of his season-high in the loss to the Cavaliers on Feb. 28.
White was out there for 36:09, and Jrue Holiday, who returned after missing four games with a mallet finger (that’s doight de maillet for our French readers), played 34:42. And Mazzulla used just three bench players. This was not a playoff game, but it sure was a playoff rotation.
I suspect we’d all sign up for a rematch of Saturday’s game in the Finals come June — for the history, of course, but mostly because the Celtics, presuming full health (they didn’t even have Kristaps Porzingis on Saturday), would secure Banner 19 in six games or fewer.
The Celtics play the tankin’-for-Flagg Jazz Monday night, which almost certainly will be an opportunity for Baylor Scheierman and the Stay-Ready bench crew to show what they can do. The varsity must rest up and reload for that Wednesday showdown with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder, who have the depth, athleticism, and defensive dedication to bother the Celtics in a way that the Lakers cannot.
Not to get too far ahead of ourselves — again, all proper respect to the Cavs — but the Thunder would be a load for the Celtics to handle in the Finals.
The best hope might be that they’re not quite ready for prime-time and the Finals spotlight, much as the ’22 Celtics were against the more poised and experienced Warriors.
The Celtics-Thunder matchup will be hard-fought and telling. But without knowing how it will go, we already know this: They’re a more formidable foe for the Celtics than the Lakers were Saturday night, and would be should they collide again in June.
Beat L.A.?
After what we witnessed Saturday, that wouldn’t be a question, but rather an extremely satisfying formality.
Chad Finn can be reached at chad.finn@globe.com. Follow him @GlobeChadFinn.