Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
The Celtics Have Regained Their Defensive Identity, and It's More Likely to Lead to Banner 18 Than Shooting Their Way to a Championship
The Celtics started this season at a historic pace offensively. When the calendar turned to December, they were 18-4, generating 121.6 points per game, 121.5 per 100 possessions, averaging 16.9 makes from beyond the arc, and registering a true-shooting percentage of 63.4 percent and an effective field goal percentage of 59.6 percent.
Granted, that sample size of data from NBA.com represents slightly more than a quarter of an 82-game campaign, but each figure exceeds the single-season record in its category.
But starting with a miniseries against the Heat, teams raised their physicality against Boston's blistering offense, switched more frequently against on and off-ball screens, and played passing lanes more aggressively.
The Magic utilized their length to surround the paint, deterring the Celtics from attacking the rim but still having the ability to contest shots from beyond the arc. The result was Boston going 0/2 against Orlando on its home floor, getting held to 92 points in the second loss.
The following possessions are from a stretch where the hosts missed eight-straight shots, six were threes, and the ball hardly ever touched the paint.
The next time they took the floor, the Pacers kept Myles Turner camped in the paint, pressured the ball, and in the first half, they didn't switch much but did an excellent job navigating screens and avoided getting put in rotation.
In the first quarter, the Celtics surrendered 42 points while scoring only 22, looking as unsure of themselves as they had all season.
Boston went down by 30 and lost for the fifth time in six games that night. But after a disastrous opening frame, the following three, the second half, in particular, captured the Celtics' identity shift, swinging back to what was at the center of last season's incredible turnaround that nearly resulted in raising banner 18 to the TD Garden rafters.
Indiana went from erupting for 42 points in the first 12 minutes to Boston holding them under 30 in each of the three proceeding quarters, yielding only 17 in the final frame.
That made it easier to maintain an up-tempo pace, and Jayson Tatum, scoring 28 points in the second half, led the charge as the Celtics challenged defenders to prove they could stop them, not just get well-positioned to do so.
That assertiveness, which they applied not just in transition but also when operating in the halfcourt, translated to 26 points in the paint and 22 on second-chance opportunities in the second half, outscoring the Pacers 69-46 in the final two quarters.
Two nights later, Boston hosted the Timberwolves. Even in a first frame where the Celtics registered only 22 points, their process was sound, often generating quality shots from beyond the arc they didn't convert on. And because they didn't allow going 1/9 from long range to distract from their focus or effort defensively, they often operated up-tempo, helping manufacture 14 points in the paint.
Boston went 13/46 (28.3 percent) on threes that night but never allowed that cold shooting to hinder how it played defensively, holding Minnesota to fewer than 30 points in three of four quarters, including yielding 23 in the final 12 minutes.
In this author's opinion, Sunday's 139-118 Christmas win over the Bucks was the Celtics' best defensive display this season. Boston was incredibly active, demonstrating textbook execution of its switch-heavy scheme, which it can utilize with greater regularity since Robert Williams returned.
One can't ignore the lack of force from Giannis Antetokounmpo in that holiday matchup. But Al Horford and Grant Williams did a terrific job as on-ball defenders, backing off Antetokounmpo, inviting him to make his living from the mid-range, an invitation he often accepted.
The Celtics also protected the three-point line, surrendering only seven attempts from the corners while holding them to 11/32 (34.4 percent) from beyond the arc before both teams emptied their benches for the final 3:41.
And rather than treating Tuesday's tilt with the Rockets like 1/82, succumbing to a post-Christmas lull, the Celtics stayed locked in defensively.
It took until a Josh Christopher free throw with 2:05 left after both teams mostly emptied their benches -- Derrick White started the game and stayed in until the final buzzer -- for Houston to reach 100 points.
Boston limited its guests to 40 percent shooting from the field, including 14/45 (31.1 percent) on threes.
What makes the Celtics getting back to an identity that starts with what they're doing defensively so important is that defense is far more reliable than long-range shooting, including when facing another top team, like the Bucks, on the road in the playoffs.
And even in games where Boston can't buy a bucket from beyond the arc, staying locked in defensively can and has kept the Celtics in games, including by making it easier to play up-tempo. Doing so helps produce points in the paint, trips to the free-throw line, and gets the defense to collapse, creating quality, in-rhythm threes.
It's a shift that has Boston ranked second in defensive rating in December, improving to seventh for the season, and yielding the sixth-fewest points per game this month. And it's a more likely path to the Larry O'Brien trophy than the Celtics trying to shoot their way to a championship.
Further Reading
The Top 5 Plays from Tuesday's Celtics-Rockets Game
Breaking Down the Top 5 Plays from the Celtics-Bucks Christmas Showdown
