After a surprise loss in Houston, then a victory on the wire in Minnesota, the Celtics offer themselves their quietest victory so far of their “road trip” in progress in the West. With a major five that was perfectly fueled, the pair Jayson Tatum – Jaylen Brown in the lead at the finish, Boston had no difficulty getting rid of the Blazers (112-126).
This success allows them to stay in contact with the Bucks, in the hope of recovering the first place in the Eastern Conference by the end, imminent, of the regular season. The Blazers, they are dangerously far from the Top 10 of their conference with this fifth consecutive defeat…
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
– Damian Lillard’s last stand. Portland, which lost the first three quarters, only briefly led in the first minutes of the game. Trailing by 15 points at the break (48-63), then 19 units twelve minutes later (70-89), the Blazers relied on the talent of soloist Damian Lillard in the last act. Seeing that his teammates lacked inspiration in attack, the leader allowed himself to chain… 18 points in a row for his team, based on penetrations with contact and above all award-winning baskets, sanctioning the slightest space available after a screen. Thanks to its 25 points in the period, Portland was able to return to eight units (105-113), but without really worrying the opposing team. Because the locals had too much trouble containing their duels, committing too many faults and thus not chaining the necessary stops.
– Weight difference. Although super clumsy in the game, Blake Griffin had a significant impact with his six offensive rebounds captured, almost as much as the entire team opposite. The Blazers suffered from a lack of physical commitment which resulted in this significant difference in rebounds: 52 for visitors against 37 for locals. These same Celtics, in particular the Tatum-Brown pair, had no trouble scoring in Portland’s racket with 50 points scored, against 38 against.
– Portland in great danger. The current bad patch of the Blazers does not date from today. Since the All-Star Game hiatus, only the Pistons have done worse than them in the league when it comes to results. By winning only two of their last ten outings, the men of Chauncey Billups see the doors of the Top 10 move away night after night. They are now two and a half games behind the 10th-placed Lakers. With 12 innings to go, that’s a lot. After receiving the Clippers on Sunday, they have no interest in missing out on a series of meetings against better-placed competitors: moving to Utah, then receiving the Bulls and especially the Thunder and the Pelicans.
TOPS/FLOPS
✅ Celtics Five. Jayson Tatum and Jaylon Brown have been the usual offensive powerhouses, but the other three elements of the five have been essential to the collective functioning of the Celtics. We think of the composure of Derrick White who never cracked on the free throw line in the last moments. At this interception by Marcus Smart in front of Damian Lillard, two minutes from the end, which allowed Jaylen Brown to finish on the counterattack. Or this award-winning basket from Al Horford, author of his first double-double passing of the season, in “dagger” mode in the seconds that followed.
✅ Damian Lillard. Symptomatic match for the leader who wanted to take matters into his own hands in the fourth quarter but without that really influencing the fate of the meeting. Deprived of Jerami Grant (quadriceps), he would undoubtedly have expected more solid contributions from Jusuf Nurkic and Anfernee Simons, and above all more collective solidity in defense.
⛔ Jusuf Nurkic. Very small form for the pivot who, after having missed about fifteen matches because of a calf injury, is struggling to find sensations. For five games, the Bosnian has only had 6 points (39% on shots…) and 6 rebounds on average.
THE FOLLOWING
Blazers (31-39) : reception of the Clippers on Sunday.
Celtics (49-22) : moving to Utah next night.
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