Tonight at TD Garden, we were all treated to a phenomenon that I believe occurs most frequently in the NBA compared to MLB, NFL or the NHL. One team (the Celtics) showed up in a big way while their opponent (the Cavaliers) couldn't be bothered to put forth anything that resembled a professional effort. Haha sorry to sound like such a hardo but it's true. Boston (9-6 overall, 5-2 home) came in with three straight losses but you would have never guessed that with the precision that they dismantled Cleveland (8-8 overall, 3-5 road) 141-103. The final score really says it all, doesn't it? C's star Jayson Tatum missed what hopefully is his last game while he recovers from Covid-19 but he was far from needed this evening. Guard Jaylen Brown (33 points, 2 steals in 19 minutes) set a new NBA record for most points scored in the shot clock era in under 20 minutes of playing time.
This was never even close to a competitive game because the Celts dropped a season-high 38 points in the first quarter to take a 17-point lead right out of the gate and that was followed by their highest scoring half (73 points) of 2020-21 and a 22-point advantage going into the break. Believe it or not, despite this debacle, the Cavs are a much improved team that should push for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference this season. Seriously. That hardly mattered to the Celtics who extended their win-streak vs. the Cavaliers to a whopping nine games. All 14 Boston players that dressed were able to get on the court for at least nine minutes of work. Point guard Kemba Walker (21 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals) was also efficient with his time, center Daniel Theis (17 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 blocks) filled up the box score and guard Marcus Smart (12 points, 9 assists, 5 steals) just missed out on a double-double. Guard Carsen Edwards scored a career-high 18 points in 19 minutes off the bench and rookie small forward Aaron Nesmith (11 points, 6 rebounds) finally showed a brief glimpse of why he was picked 14th overall by Boston in this past draft.
The lopsided result occurred at the perfect time as well for Boston since they hit the road after this game to head to Chicago (7-9 overall, 2-4) for tomorrow night's (9, NBC Sports Boston) meeting with the Bulls at the United Center. Likewise, they couldn't have picked a much easier opponent on the second part of a back-to-back than rudderless Chicago who has been rebuilding for most of the past decade or so. Before tonight's matchup with the Cavs, Celtics head coach Brad Stevens sounded optimistic that Tatum could return against Chicago for his first game since January 8. I'm sure that he will be rusty whenever he gets back but Brown has been on fire for most of this season and Kemba is improving with every outing that goes by. Guard Zach LaVine (26.8 points per game) can score with the best of them in the NBA, Finnish big guy Lauri Markkanen (18.6 points per game) and point guard Coby White (15.9 points per game and 5.9 assists per game) are both quality young players but my fellow PC alum and the new head coach Billy Donovan sure has his work cut out for him in the Windy City. The Bulls haven't been relevant for years on end and I don't expect that to change anytime soon.
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