While Joe Mazzulla insisted he was not a fan of the All-Star break because he just wanted to keep playing, his players welcomed it. While Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown participated in All-Star weekend, the rest of the Celtics enjoyed some time off to refresh themselves, knowing four months of basketball still remained if they reach their championship goal.
They did not seem worried about losing any momentum after their sizzling start to the season, capped by heading into the break with a 50-point win. And on Thursday, they picked up exactly where they left off.
The Celtics, briefly, were threatened by the Bulls, a potential first-round playoff opponent come April. But they otherwise handled business as they typically have against inferior opponents this season. They did so with one of their favorite formulas – 3-point shooting and defense – which carried them to a mostly stress-free 129-112 victory in Chicago.
Derrick White led the way with 28 points, Tatum had 25 and Brown added 21 as the Celtics ripped the United Center nets by making 23 of their 47 3-pointers. They let go of the rope defensively in the second quarter, but responded the right way and overcame a three-point halftime deficit to secure their seventh consecutive victory.
“We still have a lot of work to do,” White told NBC Sports Boston. “It just doesn’t happen like that. But it’s a good win here in the first one and we just have to build off of it.”
The C’s surged with a hot first quarter behind White as they built a 16-point lead but took their foot off the gas in the second quarter. Chicago’s double-big lineup of Nikola Vucevic and Andre Drummond gave the Celtics problems as their defensive execution waned and the Bulls continued to cash in on great looks.
The Bulls scored 39 points in the second quarter as the Celtics’ energy dipped, and Coby White’s late 3-pointer gave them a three-point halftime lead.
But the C’s responded with a big third quarter, a period that has been their Achilles heel at times this season. Mazzulla told reporters that an adjustment defensively to their pick-and-roll coverage allowed the Celtics to be more physical at the point of attack with the Bulls’ playmakers of White, DeMar DeRozan and Alex Caruso. And their activity increased.
The Celtics went on a 10-0 run out of halftime and held the Bulls scoreless for the first 3:52 of the third period. Chicago never really recovered. After torching Boston for 20 points in the first half, Vucevic scored just two points the rest of the game. The Bulls whittled their deficit to four, but never closer as the Celtics pulled away with their defense and shot-making. Tatum scored 15 points in the third, including a step-back 3-pointer that put the Celtics up 15 in the final minute of the period.
The Celtics opened their lead to 21 early in the fourth quarter and the Bulls never made another push. The C’s finished with 10 steals and 11 blocks, with those 21 “stocks” marking their second-most of the season as they overwhelmed the Bulls defensively and never looked back.
Other takeaways and notes:
– White didn’t miss a beat in his return from the break. White, who came up short of earning an All-Star nod, looked refreshed with a dominant first quarter that helped the Celtics build their early advantage. On one sequence, White stole a pass from White and took it the other way by himself for a transition dunk. Then on the next defensive possession, White recorded two blocks – one on the 6-foot-10 Vucevic before swatting Julian Phillips, which led to a Brown three-point play.
Moments later, White’s 3-pointer gave Boston its largest lead at 16. He finished the first quarter with 12 points and three blocks.
– Some of the Celtics starters seemed to be taking turns scoring the ball as they further demonstrated their sacrifice and acknowledgment of feeding the hot hand. While White and Tatum took over the first and third quarters, the second quarter was all Brown as he scored 14 of his 21 points in the period. He scored eight consecutive points during one stretch – including one play when he dominated Bulls guard Ayo Dosunmu in the post for a three-point play. That surge helped the C’s stay level while they had trouble guarding the Bulls in the second.
– Xavier Tillman and Jaden Springer each made their Celtics debuts in garbage time after being traded at the deadline two weeks ago. Tillman checked in with 2:33 to go in the fourth, while Springer entered 19 seconds later. Tillman scored his first two points on a layup before recording a block, while Springer finished with an empty line. It seems Mazzulla is slowly working them into the lineup as they get acclimated to the team and earn the coach’s trust.
For now, Luke Kornet’s spot as the second big off the bench looks secure as Tillman gets settled and competes for playing time. Kornet had another strong effort with 10 points, including a pair of putback slams in the fourth quarter.
– Sam Hauser was inadvertently elbowed in the face by Kornet in the third quarter as they scrambled for a rebound, and left the game and didn’t return. Mazzulla told reporters postgame that he’s doing fine.