Jayson Tatum Dominates, Celtics Beat Knicks: Six Things That Went Right For Boston

BOSTON — The Boston Celtics got their first win of the season, holding off the New York Knicks 107-103 behind an incredible night from Jayson Tatum. 

The teams went back-and-forth in a foul-filled first quarter that ended with the Knicks up one. The Celtics opened the second on a 10-4 and flipped the halftime score, going up one at the half thanks to a balanced attack. They reopened an eight-point lead in the third, their largest to that point. Miles McBride kept the Knicks close, but the Celtics closed the quarter on a 13-4 run to open up a 10-point lead. They maintained that to start the fourth, but the Knicks got within one again. This time, Jayson Tatum hit three big buckets to hold the Knicks off. 

Box Score

What Went Right

Tatum on track: He got off to a good start offensively, putting up seven points, five rebounds, and two assists in the first quarter. He carried that good start to a monster, do-it-all night. He finished with 36 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, and three steals, and he hit three monster shots in the clutch to hand Boston the win.

This was a real superstar performance from Tatum, and a massive bounceback after a tough game in Detroit.

Paul George was disruptive on defense: It took a little time for him to find his offense, but George came away with two more steals and who knows how many deflections. 

A lot was made of his big scoring night versus Detroit, and he’s certainly capable of doing that from time to time, but this is most likely the kind of night (15 points (6-15 fg, 3-7 3pt), 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals) we can expect.

Derrick White is back: His numbers don’t jump off the page (12 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists) but he hit some timely ones. He’s started the season off strong, which hopefully continues and we can answer one of our preseason questions pretty quickly. 

Neemias Queta stepped up: Let’s get this out of the way … he hit a corner three. An important one. 

“

This is how the center rotation is supposed to look. Robinson starts and if he plays well, you ride with him. If he doesn't or gets into foul trouble, Queta comes in and takes over. He defended well, rebounded, screened and got guys open. It’s pretty much exactly what they needed from him.

Mitchell Robinson looked better: There's a long way to go, but there were flashes of what they envisioned with him in the lineup. I liked this play a lot. 

It’s just a creative sequence of screens to free Robinson up for an alley oop. He also had a roll to the basket that drew in the defense and gave Derrick White an half hour to shoot a three-pointer.

Luka Garza made an impact: This might go forgotten by time because Garza only played 3:30, but he stepped in late in the first quarter with Robinson and Queta in foul trouble and shot a perfect 3-3 for eight points. He also got one offensive rebound and a steal, ending up a +6 in that limited stint. 

“His lineup was important because it started a run for us,” Joe Mazzulla said after the game. “He was able to stretch on a perimeter and make a three for us and then he was able to get an offensive rebound on a cross match and that's one of the best things that he does.”

What Went Wrong

Early foul trouble: Mitchell Robinson and Neemias Queta both got two quick fouls, and the Celtics as a whole were fouling way too much early on. They cleaned it up later, but they should both thank Garza for his three-plus minutes of perfection because the Celtics could have been playing from behind for a while. 

Miles McBride couldn't miss: He shot 6-8 from deep and had 20 points off the bench. He’s playing for a contract and it showed. If he shot normally, the Celtics would have won by double-digits.