Nathaniel S. Butler. Getty Images.
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I tried to tell them. I tried to warn them. I tweeted them.
I wrote about it on my blog
I don't know much about this world, but I know this team. I know Jaylen Brown. In fact, anyone with a functioning brain and eyes could have told me that Jaylen Brown was going to play the game of his life after not being named All-NBA. Just take a look at his 2024 season. The most predictable thing in the world, here it is.
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A perfect performance, that's what this game was. Efficient offense, solid passing, great off-ball defense, great on-ball defense, and what I consider to be a perfect offensive approach, another perfect two-way performance. Jaylen Brown was the best player on the court in this game, and it started right at the start of the game. You could see that look on his face right after he made his first couple of buckets right at the start of the game. And unlike Jaylen before, this one didn't fade after a strong start. He was consistent and dominant for four quarters in what turned out to be the biggest game of the year.
And finally, this team won Game 2. Looking at the trust tree, part of me was starting to accept that maybe it wasn't going to happen. Maybe they were destined to lose Game 2 and then win three in a row. But it's true, it's much better to not slack and screw up your home games. The Celtics are the only team in the NBA that doesn't need to win an away game to win the NBA title. If they win at home, they're all the way there. And that's it, really.
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Like Game 1, this win wasn't just the work of one player; it was a team effort. Jrue Holiday was flawless again, playing his best basketball of the season with 3/10/15 shooting on 6-7 (3-4) shooting with zero turnovers.
Derrick White bounced back from a terrible first half with a shooting explosion in the second half.
“Especially on the catch-and-shoot three-pointers. When Derrick steps up and shoots with confidence, it changes everything about this offense. There's a lot of attention on getting the Blue Jays doubles, there's an easy swing pass every time, and all Derrick has to do is make that wide-open three-pointer that he does so well.”
I mean it when I say this is a total win. Joe finally got Oshae Brissett on the court and his energy was a big factor. Steals, rebounds, off-ball cuts, it's the same role he's had success in all year and he's been DNP-CD this postseason but he stepped up. I really appreciate what he's been able to do in the limited time he's had.
And of course Jayson Tatum. He had arguably his worst first half of the entire season. He couldn't make any shots, played zero defense, played with zero energy and looked completely worn out. And what about the second half? He's not only a player we'll remember, but a player the Celtics need.
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It wasn't always perfect, in fact it was frustrating at times, but NBA games are 48 minutes for a reason. Credit to Tatum for staying on track and continuing a good process, and it happened at the perfect time. I think we can all agree he needs to improve on his 48-minute performance going forward, but for now I'm happy to take any win.
The Pacers waved the white flag pretty early in the fourth, and given the score and the news of Haliburton's injury, it's kind of understandable why.
This is a pretty big factor for the rest of this series, especially with the games taking place every other day. They've had a ton of injuries in the playoffs so far, and losing Haliburton is obviously a big blow to what the Pacers want to do. It's a shame to have all of your stars get injured, but that's what happens in the playoffs. More than anything, you need some injury luck.
The Celtics dominated the Pacers in Game 2 and didn't lose, but it's time to go on the offensive in Game 3. Take a 3-0 lead and effectively end this series. We've done what we had to do to defend our home court, now it's time to keep doing what we've been doing to stay unbeaten on the road. Al only played 25 minutes and KP is close, so let's find a way to end this series as quickly as possible so both of them can get more rest. Don't put the Pacers on life support by messing with food.
As always, I'll dig into the details tomorrow morning, but for now I'm just enjoying the feeling of a tough loss on home court to start a playoff series in a way that many thought would never happen, and yet here we are.
10 done, 6 remaining.
