The CelticsThey played their last home game before their funeral NBAOpening of regular season against PhiladelphiaOn Oct. 18, another great performance by the core lineups was followed by a 19 point loss in garbage time. Here are 10 takeaways from the Celtics’ 125-119 overtime loss to the Raptors.
1. It’s shocking how good the Celtics are looking so far, especially after Wednesday’s win-turned-garbage-time-loss. The HornetsLast weekend’s Raptors team looked like a glorified G League squad, so that was the real test. The truth is that the Raptors were solid in the first half. They used their usual defensive strategy with aggression and had some offensive flow.
The Celtics are just clicking offensively as if it’s March, which is why Jayson Tatum said he is “super encouraged” even after a game that technically finished the way it did.
“I think it kind of feels like we’re leaving off from the second half of last season,” Tatum said. “Just the way that we’re moving the ball, playing with each other. It just feels natural and it’s fun playing that way.”
2. The Celtics are incorporating a lot more popping into their offense. Interim coach Joe Mazzulla spent the early days of camp focusing on the team’s spacing, making sure guys are spreading the floor in the right spots and cutting in spots that will flow against the momentum of the defense.
