The Boston Celtics had a busy week as they had four games, including a rematch with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls. They took a trip to New York and Memphis and walked away with some franchise records. On this trip, Jayson Tatum continued his MVP campaign averaging 31.7 points per game over the week and 32.1 for the entire season. Marcus Smart has placed second in the most recent Defensive Player of the Year ladder, only behind Milwaukee Bucks’s Giannis Antetokounmpo. Good luck to these two Celtics as they continue to push for prestigious hardware. Let’s recap this week in Boston basketball.
Nov. 5th Celtics AT Cavaliers
The Celtics lost another overtime matchup against the Cavaliers 113-114. The Celtics fought hard through the end, and Jaylen Brown was just off on his game-winning attempt. While Tatum is the usual candidate for game-winning shots, giving Brown these moments before the playoffs can prove dividends later when Boston has two closers in Spring.
n regulation, Tatum scored the game-tying dunk over Cavs center Jarrett Allen. Head coach Joe Mazzulla drew up an out-of-timeout play to get Smart the ball near the logo as Tatum came sprinting from the backcourt and gained a full head of steam to the rim. Tatum then blocked Donovan Mitchell‘s game-winning shot, which sent the game to overtime. Great effort by the team, but the Cavs are serious contenders for the first time since LeBron James was there.
Player of the Game, Darius Garland: 29 points, 12 assists, and five rebounds.
Nov. 4th Bulls VS Celtics
Boston could have easily rolled over and taken a second loss to the Bulls as they did with Cleveland. Instead, they locked in and got a 123-119 against the Chicago Bulls. Despite a masterpiece by DeMar DeRozan, who dropped 46 points, the Celtics were able to fight back with two big performances of their own. Malcolm Brogdon scored 25 points off the bench on 90 percent shooting. This was another early revenge game for Boston, and did not let it escape from them like the Cavs game.
Player of the Game Jayson Tatum: 36 points, 12 rebounds, six assists, a steal, and a block.
Nov. 5th Celtics AT Knicks
On the second night of a back-to-back, the Celtics could not respond better with three centers out of rotation as they got a 133-118 win over the New York Knicks. Sam Hauser got serious minutes this game and scored 17 points with five three-pointers. Another great bench piece that Mazzulla can use. The Knicks’ core of Julius Randle, RJ Barrett, and Jalen Brunson all scored 20+ points, but that wasn’t enough to top the flaming Celtics on this night. Boston hit a franchise-record 27 three-pointers. Brown and Tatum brought their game as well. Brown hit 30 as Tatum dropped 26.
Along with this, Boston had 30 assists in this game. The offense was less stagnant and iso-heavy. The ball was out of hands fast and finding open shooters.
Player of the Game, Jaylen Brown: 30 points, five rebounds, and three assists.
Nov. 7th Celtics AT Grizzlies
MVP Candidate Ja Morant would be one of the biggest challenges for Boston this season and they took his Grizzlies down 109-106. Outside of a third-quarter breakdown. Boston had stellar defense all night on one of the premier teams in basketball. Tatum turned on MVP mode in the second quarter as he racked up 19 points. Morant responded with an MVP-mode third quarter with Tatum on the bench. Morant rallied the Grizzlies and gained the lead before the fourth. Tatum took over the fourth again and eventually put the game away with free throws.
Player of the Game, Jayson Tatum: 39 points, three rebounds, two assists, and two blocks.
Is Jayson Tatum the MVP Favorite?
So much good basketball is being played that Tatum’s 32.1 points per game average would rank him fourth in the NBA. In most years, that is an easy first place. Tatum is seventh on the most recent MVP ladder, but that was before defeating and outperforming Morant in a head-to-head battle. Morant is fourth on the recent ladder. With Tatum averaging over 30 points per game on career-high efficiency while playing tier-one defense, Tatum just has to continue to win ball games while playing his style of basketball. If he continues to do this consistently, we will get our first look at a league that will be run by Tatum, Antetokounmpo, and Luka Doncic.
Week Three Final Thoughts
Tatum is doing a lot of the load-carrying for this team. They cannot seem to keep a lead with him on the bench, as Brown is struggling to be a playmaker when he is asked to be the guy. Mazzulla has drastically improved with his timeout management, but his defensive schemes are still too inconsistent. Nonetheless, Boston is 7-3 in their first ten and won three straight. Over the next week, Boston will host and go to Detriot to battle the Pistons. Between those matchups, they’ll head to Denver to play the Nuggets. To wrap up the week on Monday, they’ll host the Thunder. Expect a hot Celtics team to extend that winning streak to seven.
Follow me on Twitter for more sports news and analysis! Also, tune into the Sideline Summit podcast on all platforms and follow us on all platforms for sports news and analysis. Be sure to check out some other Belly Up Articles here.
