If the Celtics needed an ego check after their season-opening loss to the New York Knicks, they got it from an unlikely source.

The Wizards, who had the NBA’s second-worst record last season, shook up the reigning champions in Washington on Thursday night. The weak team, strengthened by 17 points from Jordan Poole in the first quarter, kept the tempo throughout the first 20 minutes and was ahead by eight points against the Boston team, which lacked its usual liveliness.

But eventually the huge disparity in talent between the two clubs became apparent. The Celtics pulled away late in the second quarter and dominated the second half, winning 122-102 at Capital One Arena.

Jayson Tatum continued his strong start to the season with 25 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists and a steal for Boston despite shooting just 3-for-11 from 3-point range. Tatum nearly outscored Poole with 14 points in the first quarter and just missed a double-double in the first half, recording 20 points and nine rebounds at halftime.

Jaylen Brown celebrated his 28th birthday with 27 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 steals. After flexing his muscles this summer, he showed off his physical prowess by attacking the basket with authority, hitting 3 of 6 3-pointers, including two in the 21-second span, to open the fourth quarter.

Derrick White played the third scorer role well for the second game in a row (19 points). The do-it-all guard has attempted 17 3-pointers so far this season and made 10 of them (58.8%), improving on the long-range prowess he showed during last year’s playoff run.

Speaking of three-pointers, Payton Pritchard weathered a rough shooting night in Tuesday’s opener, going 5-for-10; His 15 points carried Boston’s bench production with Sam Hauser (lower strain) sidelined. Pritchard also took a shot from beyond half court (this was his specialty, as seen in the NBA Finals), but he released it just after the third quarter buzzer.

It was an unsurprising outcome given where these two teams stand: The Celtics are pushing for their second straight title, while the Wizards are trying to give themselves the best chance of landing Duke, Maine sensation Cooper Flagg, the projected No. 1 overall pick for next year.

Washington traded away most of its key veterans last season and had two rookies in its starting lineup Thursday (Alex Sarr and Bub Carrington), plus another rookie (Kyshawn George) in its rotation.

The Celtics gave Sarr, this year’s second overall pick, a rough introduction to the NBA. Tatum hit three 3-pointers against the 7-foot-1 Frenchman, including back-to-back shots during Boston’s second-quarter takeover, and Jrue Holiday forced him to foul on consecutive possessions to spark an 8-0 Celtics run.

The Wizards responded with a 12-2 spurt, capped by one of Poole’s six 3-pointers, to take a 51-49 lead midway through the second quarter. But from then on it was all Celtics. Boston scored 31 of the next 38 points and Brown closed out the first half with a pair of contested layups.

Poole, who scored 26 points, was the Wizards’ only bright spot. The rest of Washington’s roster went 1-for-25 from 3-point range.

After Boston outscored Washington 34-19 in the third quarter, head coach Joe Mazzulla emptied the bench in the fourth quarter, giving first-round rookie Baylor Scheierman and two-way players J.D. Davison and Drew Peterson their first game action of the season.

Next up for the Celtics is a trip to Detroit for a similarly lopsided Saturday night matchup. The Pistons finished the past two seasons with the NBA’s worst record, including last year’s miserable 14-win season.

Hauser out

Speaking to reporters before the match, Hauser said his back injury “was something he dealt with off and on throughout the summer and preseason.” The 26-year-old wing scorer said he did not feel any pain during the Knicks game, but “it flared up” on Thursday morning.

“I just try to do the best I can and go from there,” Hauser told reporters via CLNS Media.

Other than Kristaps Porzingis’ postseason hiatus, the Celtics enjoyed great overall health last season, including their bench. Hauser and Pritchard, the top non-major reserves, missed just three games between them.

Second-year pro Jordan Walsh projected as next wing strong pre-seasonhowever, Mazzulla opted to replace Hauser with center Neemias Queta and lean more towards double-major lineups featuring Queta, Al Horford, Luke Kornet and Xavier Tillman. Walsh didn’t see the court until the second minute of the fourth quarter, when the Celtics were up 31.

The Wizards were able to find some holes in these lineups early, scoring 30 points in the paint and gaining a 14-3 advantage in fast break points before halftime. These points were equalized in the second half and Queta finished the game with 12 points and 7 rebounds in 14 minutes.

Mazzulla said the substitution schedule will depend on matchups and could change from night to night. It’s unclear whether Hauser’s injury will affect his availability on Saturday.

“We have the flexibility and depth to go different routes,” Mazzulla told reporters. “So there might not necessarily be a wing (to replace him). It could be a guard; It can be big. It just depends on what the matchups are on the second units. What the submodel is will vary from game to game. It will change during the game. …

“So I have confidence that whoever we call, they’re going to be ready to play because of the work they’ve done and the things they’ve done. It has to be everyone by committee, depending on what the game needs at a particular time.”

outside the circle

League announced on Thursday new look court designs for the 2024 NBA Cup, and although a few teams have opted for gray bids, these are a clear improvement over last season’s glaring downsides. The Celtics will be one of only two clubs (along with Minnesota) to play on a green court, and theirs will feature an oversized, 32-block hardwood pattern.

First look at our NBA Cup arena pic.twitter.com/tctsAg013s

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) 24 October 2024

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Unlike last year, teams will wear their best alternative “Statement” jerseys in their NBA Cup games, instead of the “City” jerseys that change each season. Celtics court colors It matches the black uniforms with green accents they’ve worn since 2017-18 (and sported Thursday night in Washington). There are no signs neon green graces the set of the upcoming ’24-25 “City.”

Boston will open NBA Cup pool play against the Atlanta Hawks on November 12 at TD Garden.

First Publication Date: 24 October 2024, 21:35