On Friday night, Boston’s revamped starting lineup made its TD Garden debut, and Celtics supporters were not impressed with what they saw.
In their home opener against Miami, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Kristaps Porzingis put on a display, scoring 111 points between them in a 119-111 victory.
Not only did two or three guys account for the majority of the scoring, but all five players scored between 17 and 28 points.
Head coach Joe Mazzulla remarked after his side improved to 2-0, “The balanced attack that we had the entire game is the epitome of what our team can be when we play together.”
Not only did they score, but each of those players stuffed the stat sheet in their own way:
- White: 28 points (5-7 3P), six rebounds, three blocks
- Brown: 27 points, six rebounds, two steals
- Tatum: 22 points, eight rebounds, five assists
- Holiday: 17 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists
- Porzingis: 17 points, nine rebounds, three steal
A couple of things should stand out on that list. First and foremost: the name at the top.
Of those five players, White is probably the least-expected to lead the team in scoring. And that’s not a knock on him; he just happens to be playing alongside four guys who have averaged at least 21 points per game over a single season.
With that being said, White has proven in the past that he’s capable of taking over games, and that’s exactly what he did down the stretch against the Heat. He scored half of his 28 points during the fourth quarter while shooting 3-of-5 from long range.
“We need him to be aggressive, to score, to attack, and to make plays,” said Tatum. “When he’s at his best and being aggressive I think we’re just a much better team.”
The Celtics are also a better team when the second guy on that list is playing at the top of his game.
Following an 11-point performance in Wednesday’s season-opening win in New York, Brown bounced back in a big way. He scored more points in the fourth quarter against the Heat (12) than he had in all four quarters against the Knicks. He was locked in and making huge plays on both sides of the ball, especially on the defensive end.
“The best thing that I’ve seen from him is his consistency defensively,” head coach Joe Mazzulla said of Brown. “When our two best players compete at a high level defensively, it sets the tone. We know Derrick and Jrue are gonna do that because that’s what they do. And for Jayson, and specifically Jaylen, these first two games, regardless of how it’s going on the floor, he’s competing at a high level with toughness and physicality. And tonight, he showed what he is. He’s a guy that, when we need a basket, he can get to his spot and get a basket.”
In truth, all five starters have that ability, which means they are each capable of taking over a game in crunch time. We saw Porzingis take over the fourth quarter of game one. It was Brown and White’s turn to do so in game two. Maybe Holiday and/or Tatum are next.
“On any given night it’s going to be different guys at certain moments,” said Tatum “And I think that’s going to really help us in the long run.”
Brown concurred that this club will not be led by one or two players. Since each of them is a star in their own right, sacrifices will be necessary. However, it also means that they can afford to have several hot hands available on any given night, which should make opposition defenses nervous all year long.
“You just have to be aggressive and ready for every game,” Brown stated. “The game will determine the outcome; all we need to do is keep finding each other in time and everything will work out.”
