The shock of this start of the season did not fail in its promises, and the NBA champion imposed his rank. King Boston was right in his battle against the Cavaliers, whose record was so far immaculate after 15 games. At TD Garden, the Celtics got off to the best start, buoyed as often by their outside skill with five of their first six baskets scored at 3-points. Opposite, the Cleveland attack is seized up between lost balls and major clumsiness, especially for Darius Garland.
Kenny Atkinson's men closed ranks thanks to the bench and better aggression when the Celtics replacements took time to adjust the sights. This won't last. After limiting the damage for 19 minutes (46-41), the visitors completely shattered in the face of Boston's external success.
Joe Mazzulla's players are diabolical behind the arc and take advantage of the slightest defensive delay to punish. They finished the first period at 14/22 by far and concluded the second quarter with a scathing 19-6. 65-48 at rest, the NBA leader is on one knee.
From -21 to -2, the fiery return of the Cavs
However, the Riders are not giving up their weapons. The halftime visibly gave advice, with a simple mantra: attack the circle as soon as the opportunity presents itself to take advantage of the Celtics' lack of coverage in the hoop. And it works, with a great Evan Mobley, at 14 points in the third act, which turns into a demonstration. Boston cannot find the key in defense and the gap which had increased to 21 units is shrinking minute by minute.
Tempers heat up a little as tension rises and the referees allow more physical Basketball to play. It's not the playoffs yet, but we are witnessing a high-stakes match, a real one. You only need to see the determination of Jayson Tatum, author of another long shot at the siren of the third quarter to understand that the meeting has taken on another dimension.
The last quarter is just as contested and turns into a Donovan Mitchell show. The All-Star guard is incandescent and takes the reins of his team when Darius Garland continues his disastrous evening on the shoot. Boston resisted and never let the Cavaliers equalize, even regaining a nine-point lead in money time. But Mitchell did not give up and scored 13 points in a row, bringing the game back to one possession thanks to a few free throws left on the way by Boston. A last defense not very well exploited following a throw-in and Al Horford puts an end to the suspense, alone with the dunk. Boston comes out on top, Cleveland loses, but with their heads held high.
WHAT TO REMEMBER
– Jayson Tatum did the song at the Cavs. Without Isaac Okoro, Caris LeVert or even Max Strus, all in the infirmary, Cleveland has not found the solution to slow down the leader of the Celtics. As a boss, he was responsible for taking the big shots when necessary, or making the shots wisely. He finished with 33 points, including six 3-point baskets in the Boston festival (22/41), 12 rebounds and 7 assists.
– The Nightmare of Darius Garland. Despite the absences, Kenny Atkinson was once again able to find solutions by drawing from his squad, with Georges Niang, Ty Jerome and Craig Porter Jr all with more than ten points coming off the bench. It was no less necessary to stay in the game despite the game without Darius Garland. The leader didn't get anything back all evening, from a distance as well as in the circle and ended up with a horrible 3/21 on the shoot.
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
