Jaylen Brown gave the Celtics the whole lot he had in quest of their first win of the season over the Pistons on Sunday — nicely, principally the whole lot.
Boston and Detroit squared off at Little Caesars Enviornment, with the Celtics chasing their first win after back-to-back losses outlined by single-quarter defensive collapses. Brown took issues into his personal palms, delivering 41 factors — the 29-year-old’s 14th profession 40-point explosion. He went 12-of-25 from the ground and sank 12 free throws, serving because the offense’s driving power en path to a entrance page-worthy efficiency.
However even after dropping 41 factors on an environment friendly capturing clip, Brown admitted it wasn’t sufficient to cowl all areas of have to get the Celtics throughout the end line.
“I don’t know, however we gotta determine that out,” Brown stated after Boston’s 119-113 loss in Detroit. “I feel plenty of our points will be solved simply on the defensive glass — I gotta get extra concerned. I gotta get some extra rebounds. Plenty of lengthy pictures result in lengthy rebounds, so simply timing. A number of the pictures simply maintain bouncing over our head, or a few of these guys simply maintain pushing us beneath. However rebounding is unquestionably the largest challenge for us proper now.”
The ‘challenge’ in query, which Brown highlighted, has already landed the Celtics twenty fifth within the league in that division, averaging simply 39 rebounds per recreation. That’s the third-worst mark within the Japanese Convention, with Boston forward of solely the Cavaliers (37.3) and Nets (36.7).
Making an attempt to ascertain a frontcourt able to holding its personal has backfired on the Celtics for 3 straight video games. Payton Pritchard, the shortest participant on the roster at 6-foot-1, led the crew in rebounds with 10. He had six by halftime, matching each Neemias Queta — Boston’s beginning middle — and Brown for the night time. That’s an issue. The crew knew coming into the season that outworking opponents wanted to be a cornerstone of its id, but consistency has been the Celtics’ largest enemy. And sadly for President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens, cloning 4 extra copies of Hugo Gonzalez isn’t an choice — a minimum of not with present expertise.
Meaning the onus is on the Celtics to tug themselves up by their bootstraps and, like Brown, take a tough look within the mirror on their flight from Detroit to New Orleans.
Beginning a season off 0-3 may not seem to be a giant deal, however it’s in contrast to any the Celtics have seen shortly. The final time Boston opened a marketing campaign with three straight losses was 12 years in the past, when Rajon Rondo, Avery Bradley, Jeff Inexperienced, Brandon Bass, and Jared Sullinger made up the beginning lineup for the 2013-14 Celtics. That crew completed 25-57, paving the best way for Boston to land Marcus Good in that summer time’s draft lottery.
Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla hasn’t seen his crew lose three straight video games since 2023. Although when Mazzulla steps again and appears on the larger image, he truthfully couldn’t care much less.
“It doesn’t matter,” Mazzulla stated. “What issues is we proceed to stay to the method of making an attempt to win. You already know, we had a 17-point lead right this moment. We acquired to shut the second quarter higher. Clearly, the fouls and the rebounds at a sure time. So I believed that our effort was we performed a whole recreation with effort. Now we gotta play a whole recreation with effort and execution, no matter that.”
Detroit grew to become the most recent crew to crush Boston within the rebounding margin, this time outdoing the Celtics with a 55-38 benefit that featured 19 offensive boards.
Mazzulla performed Chris Boucher, Josh Minott, and Luka Garza off the bench, and that trio mixed to corral 4 rebounds — that’s another than Pritchard managed to gather on the offensive facet of the glass.
“Everyone begins the yr off about togetherness and getting by means of tough instances when nobody anticipates it taking place,” Mazzulla added. “They all the time suppose it’s going to occur later than sooner, however it occurred now, so we’ve acquired to chip away at it.”
Pritchard added 21 factors to comply with Brown’s 41, and Boston’s protection held the Pistons to simply 9-of-34 (25.6%) from three, providing a number of brilliant spots in an in any other case gloomy defeat. The Celtics weren’t blown out, both, suggesting that a number of changes and a few tightening up might be the distinction between a 0-3 begin and a 3-0 Celtics crew.
That’s the mindset they’ll have to implement transferring ahead in the event that they need to go away Sunday night time’s journey to Detroit proper there within the Motor Metropolis.
“It’s early within the season. We’re nonetheless determining plenty of stuff,” Brown admitted. “Clearly, it’s not what folks wanna hear, particularly in Boston. It’s not an excuse, however it takes time. It does. I’ve stated that earlier than the season begins. It takes time to determine it out, and this is part of it. It’s unlucky. All three video games, I really feel like, have been winnable. I didn’t play my finest final recreation. Tonight, we acquired a valiant effort, however simply not sufficient. We gotta determine it out and simply concentrate on getting one.”
