The Boston Celtics were without two starters in Jaylen Brown (hamstring) and Al Horford (back) but those absences did not stop them from cruising to a dominant 145-117 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Jayson Tatum (31 points) and Dennis Schroder (31 points) led a red-hot Boston offense for the better part of four quarters as the visitors carved up a Blazers defense that was without All-Star Damian Lillard. Enes Freedom also chipped in with a season-high 15 rebounds off the bench in his return to Portland as Boston improved to 1-1 on their five-game west coast trip.
CJ McCollum had a team-high 24 points for the Blazers who dropped to 11-13 on the season despite being 10-3 at home.
Four takeaways from the victory for Boston in Ime Udoka’s hometown of Portland:
The Celtics offensive rhythm carried over from Utah: One day after putting together their best offensive output of the season in Salt Lake City, the Celtics maintained that rhythm against one of the NBA’s worst defenses. Jayson Tatum snapped out of his 3-point shooting funk while no Blazer defender could contain him or Dennis Schroder off the dribble, allowing the Celtics to get any look they wanted in the half court and transition for much of the night. Boston shot a season-high form the field and 3-point range in the victory despite missing two of their top scorers in Al Horford and Jaylen Brown.
Aaron Nesmith, Payton Pritchard make the most of their opportunities: Nesmith had been glued to the bench most nights in recent weeks as Ime Udoka has leaned on veteran players off the bench over Boston’s youth. With Brown and Romeo Langford (sprained ankle) sidelined in this one, Nesmith got a chance at more consistent run and used the chance to snap out of a 3-point funk. He knocked down his first three attempts from 3-point range of the evening, which helped Boston’s second unit turn a six-point halftime lead into a blowout with a dominant 39-26 third quarter. Nesmith still remains a bit too eager with his defense (three first half fouls earned him an early seat on the bench) but his energy on both ends of the floor proved to be a difference-maker in this win. Pritchard delivered a season-high 19 points on 5-of-7 shooting from 3-point range in his hometown, a much-needed confidence boost for the point guard.
A well-timed blowout on a grueling road trip: With the Celtics down three rotation players coming off a tough back-to-back in Utah, getting in a tight game in Portland could have been a recipe for tired legs down the stretch. Instead, Boston’s starters took care of business early in this one, building a 21-point lead in the first quarter and withstanding a strong second quarter counterpunch by Portland (via a 23-6) to put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter. Jayson Tatum (2nd) and Marcus Smart are among the minute leaders in the NBA this season so it was a welcome sight for Ime Udoka to be able to keep both players well below their season averages for minutes with a couple of days of rest upcoming. The Celtics have played more tight games than almost every team in the NBA this year so nights like this are important in having the group hold up for the long run.
Enes Freedom strengthened his case for consistent minutes: The big man was Boston’s best center on the floor by far on Saturday night as early foul trouble by Robert Williams in both halves got his number called. He was a team-high plus-29 in 22 minutes, posting a game-high 15 rebounds along with nine points, giving solid effort on the defensive end and strong screens for Boston’s ball handlers. That type of production is going to earn him more run even as the Celtics get healthy next week in Los Angeles since he’s providing good consistency off the bench.
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December 05, 2021 at 12:27PM
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Four takeaways as Boston Celtics crush Portland Trail Blazers 145-117 in best offensive outing of the season - masslive.com
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