After Last Night's Screw Job, The Celtics Learned Exactly Why You Can't Allow The Refs To Have An Opportunity To Impact A Game

Andy Lyons. Getty Images.

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Of all the changes we've seen over the years, one thing I really do like that the NBA has created are these 2 game mini series. It feels like the games always deliver, and it's the closest we can get to an actual playoff feel/vibe during the regular season. I know the league thinks that's what happens with the In Season Tournament, but to me, it's these 2 gamers that really scratch that playoff itch. Not only does it lead to some intense basketball and the start of some "bad blood" if the games are physical, but you also get to see immediate adjustments just like you do in a playoff series. 

For example, last night in Indy. The schedule says that was just a normal regular season game in early January. But to anyone watching or to anyone in that building, that did not feel like just a normal regular season game. Coming off the Celts win on Saturday, there was obviously extra juice for the rematch, even with Tatum sitting out and Haliburton getting hurt in the first half. For a regular season game, I'd say it was about as intense and entertaining as you could possibly get, and that's even before you get to any of the drama at the end.

In terms of things from a Celtics fan perspective, it was a bit of a unicorn type of game. Not only because we almost never see Tatum miss a game, but also because the Celts as a team almost never lose a game like this. I'm not kidding

I mean all you can do is laugh when you read that Grande nugget. The perfect cherry on top of an extremely annoying result. 

We'll talk more about the ending in a bit, but I will just say it's important you look at last night and accept that the Celts were just as complicit in this result too. It wasn't just a call here or there. Did they get boned? Absolutely. Did they also play a whole bunch of losing basketball prior to the final shot? Absolutely. I think this is a situation where both things can be true. 

In the end, dropping this game has now brought the Celtics to 28-8, which is good for…….the best record in the NBA. Big picture, it's whatever. In the moment? I want Adam Silver arrested. 

Let's dive in.

The Good

- Part of what makes last night so annoying is the fact that it wasted a truly special Jaylen Brown performance. With no Tatum in the lineup we all knew the deal. Jaylen was going to have to elevate his game and play as a #1, not a #2. That doesn't just mean scoring, it means everything. Think of what Tatum does on a nightly basis. He scores, he defends, he creates for others, he shows up when they need him most etc. That was Jaylen's role in this game, and boy did he deliver

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As is tradition, it was Jaylen's offense that carried the team early, finishing with another 12 points on 6-7 shooting in the first quarter. We already knew Jaylen was the teams best first quarter player, but did you know he's 9th in the entire NBA in first quarter points (7.5). Of those 9, only Giannis and KD shoot better from the field than Jaylen's 55.6%. Last time I checked those guys were pretty good. 

When things started to slip in the 3rd and the team needed buckets late, Jaylen answered that call as well with another 11 points on 4-7 (1-12) while playing all 12 minutes. It was very clear from the start of this game that Jaylen was being super aggressive, with almost everything coming at the paint and at the rim

I look at this as another sign of Jaylen's growth. Usually in games without Tatum, we see Jaylen try and make up for it by taking a ton of 3s, whereas last night I thought his offensive approach was perfect. His 3P came mostly when he was already cooking, and almost everything was aggressive and to the basket. For him to throw up a 40 piece on 17-26 (3-4) is exactly what we all wanted to see. That was the #1 type of performance that we expected, and Jaylen delivered.

It's also why I don't really have a problem with his final shot. When your best player has been that good, I'm totally fine with living with whatever he decides to do at that moment. Just like how Jaylen made the perfect decision on the late game pass to Porzingis for his three to tie things up in the final moments. I can live with calling his own number on that final possession, not to mention he got a decent look and clearly got fouled. He knew it, we knew it, everyone knew it

Credit to Jaylen for being that calm given the situation. Probably because he knows he's right.

- It was a relief to see Porzingis was fine after getting poked in the eye on Saturday, and this game was another example of how versatile he can be within this offense. The fact that he had an efficient 19 while only taking 13 shots is encouraging, as was his 7 assists and 3 blocks. It's getting repetitive at this point, but Porzingis truly is a basketball cheat code. He does everything

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I could make the case that he probably should have shot the ball even more with Tatum out, but I love how it felt like he was never really forcing anything either. When the game got tight and the Celts needed buckets, they didn't overthink things, they simply lobbed it to the 7'3 guy and let him do his thing. That's an element that we've never had before, and why if you feel like things are finally different down the stretch of these games, I won't disagree.

When things get messy late on a possession, instead of taking some sort of contested low percentage pull up jumper, the Celts can now just give the ball to KP who is either going to score, or he's going to get to the line. That makes everyone's life so much easier and why he's so crucial to their playoff run. Having that two way presence on the floor is a true difference maker, and it was great to see KP didn't miss a beat even if his eye still isn't perfect.

- With Tatum out it meant everyone was going to have to step up their production, and while Jaylen did most of the heavy lifting there, we also should not overlook the play of Jrue Holiday. I thought Jrue was pretty damn good in this game, on both ends of the floor. 

Given that Derrick had an off night, I'd say this was pretty important. Things certainly got a little easier for Holiday once Haliburton went out, but a night like this isn't really all that uncommon for Holiday so far in December. Since December 8th, or his last 15 games, we're seeing Holiday put up 14.1/5.7/4.3 on 51/47% splits with 2.1 3PM to go along with only 1.9 TOs. That's about as ideal as you could want when it comes to him thriving in his role, and the best part of all of it is of course his mindset

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His semi-transition three from the corner late in the 4th quarter last night was a MASSIVE shot, and when I watch Holiday offensively I see a guy who is looking more and more comfortable by the game. We got the defensive impact right away, but it was his offense that took some time to get rolling, but now that it's here you can see how impactful having that type of efficient firepower is at the point guard position. To get that with A+ defense and A+ ball security is a big deal, and for there to be absolutely no drama in terms of touches/points/role, almost feels like cheating. 

- I'm just going to say this now. There is going to be a moment in a playoff game where Oshae Brissett comes in and grabs a huge offensive rebound that leads to a dagger three. I don't know what round and I don't know what opponent, but it's coming. 

- Remember earlier in the year where you maybe found yourself slightly concerned over Al Horford's regression as a three point shooter? From the playoffs through the first like 10 games of the season, Horford couldn't make an open 3 to save his life. 

Well, I'm happy to report that he's now up to 39.1% on the season, and is shooting 41.9% from deep since Thanksgiving. The thing with Al's threes that makes them so impressive is they always seem to come in HUGE moments, just like they did last night

I say it all the time and I will continue to say it. Al Horford is perfect. The fact that he's still this good at his age is such a blessing, and frankly I've seen more than enough to warrant another extension. This does not look like a man who is slowing down, and now that his three point shot is back I see no reason why he can't play 5 more years at a minimum.

- Shoutout Payton Pritchard for stepping it up on the bench and being the only reserve who could buy a bucket. He finished 5-6 (4-5), everyone else….2-8 (1-4). 

The Bad

- Alright, where to start. I suppose we can begin with the bench points difference, because man did that impact this result. Hard to win on the road without your best player if your reserves are also going to get outscored 78-27. I mean that's a staggered number. 

The Celts spent all of December being at the bottom of the league in opponent 3PM, and seeing as how the Pacers went 19-40 (47.5%) with the bench doing most of this damage. This game was yet another example of why Joe's offensive approach continues to be right. The Celts dominated in the paint 52-44, and it didn't really matter because they did not keep pace from behind the line. All the crying about 3pt volume and the Celts shooting too man 3s and not taking enough 2s, well I could make the case that them not shooting a lot of 3s played a role in this loss. 

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This is especially true if your opponent is going to be that hot from three. You're not going to beat something like that trading 3s for 2s in 2024.

- As we approach the trade deadline, you can sense that all the bench guys are currently playing with their jobs on the line. The trio of Svi/Brissett/Banton is where Brad most likely looks if he's going to make a move, and I think at this point Brissett has played his way onto the roster.

The other two? Yikes. If this is Svi/Banton's chance to show Brad they deserve a roster spot, things are not going well. Banton went out and mostly gave the Celts some cardio in his minutes, and then Svi also doing nothing but missing FTs and turning the ball over is not exactly how one keeps a job on this team. I get his minutes are inconsistent, but as a shooter we should not be seeing Svi go to the line and miss 2 FTs, especially when it's coming in the 4th quarter.

- For the late-game timeout crowd, it should be noted that Joe did call a timeout with 35 seconds left instead of letting Jaylen/the team go within the flow of the game so they could set something up, just like fans say they want.

It did not lead to points, and you could make the case that he should have just let Jaylen play to his advantage.

In the final shot, my guess is Joe saw that and figured this time around he'd let them create. 

That also did not lead to points.

The takeaway? Timeouts aren't some sort of magic tool that always leads to a positive result. At the end fo the day, whether a timeout was called or not, it comes down to the player's execution. Maybe this will be what finally allows fans to understand that.

- Let's tell it like it is. The best defensive backcourt in the league got cooked by TJ McConnell. You don't have to like it, but it's true. 

- I'm THIS close to banning Derrick White from going on JJ Redick's podcast. Enough is enough. Last year he was shooting like 60% from the floor and 50% from three, went on that podcast, and then couldn't buy a bucket for a stretch.

This year he's shooting 48/41%, goes on JJ Redick's podcast that comes out on January 5th, and since that moment? He's shooting 32/29%. 

Listen, I love the interviews and I'm happy Derrick is getting his shine, but someone has to put their foot down and if that has to be me so be it. His 4-16 (2-8) was pretty brutal.

The Ugly

- If you want to look at why the Celtics truly lost this game, it's not really about the final play. For example, in Saturday's matchup, the Celts missed 9 FTs, had 17 TOs and allowed 24 points off TOs. They were fortunate it didn't bite them in the ass, but nobody would be silly enough to call that winning basketball. How do I know that?

Last night the Celtics missed 9 FTs, turned it over 15 times and allowed 20 points off TOs. They lost by 4.

THAT is a much more common result when you see a team fuck around like that. The FT shooting is the bigger concern, becasue what the hell. This is a top 10 FT shooting team in the league and you throw up back to back 9 missed FT games? There's your game right there. The final play isn't even an issue if this team doesn't completely choke from the FT line. So while it was a bad call, last time I checked the Celts put themselves in that position.

- Then of course there was where the game was truly lost, which was the 3rd quarter. Allowing 44 points on 68/57% splits while committing 6 TOs is indefensible. The Pacers went 9 minutes of the 3rd quarter where they scored on every offensive trip. I believe they started 10-11 from the floor, and the one miss they did have they managed to get the OREB and score anyway. 

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So you see it's hard for me to absolve the Celts of blame when they were that poor from the FT line and then had a 3rd quarter where they nearly went an entire 12 minutes without getting a single stop. Who are you beating when you do that shit? The Pacers were getting to the rim with ease, the Celts either couldn't stop turning it over or couldn't stop fouling, and I'm sorry, giving up 74 points on 57/52% splits in a second half with no Tyrese Haliburton is WAY more of a factor in the loss than anything that happened at the end. 

At least to me anyway.

- But that doesn't excuse what we saw to end this game. By now, everyone has seen the play

A few things here.

1. It does not matter that the ball was touched, Jaylen never lost control of it.

2. The contact to the head is clear, and happens before contact with the ball

3. The refs told Jaylen he did not get hit in the head, which is a lie

4. Why were the Pacers given the ball, when everyone stopped playing after the whistle blew? Porzingis doesn't go for the rebound because the play is dead.

Numbers 3 & 4 are the big ones for me. If the refs are saying this was no foul because Jaylen didn't get hit in the head, that is wrong. To overturn that matters because without it, the Pacers don't have their timeout to advance the ball, which as we saw, played a huge role in the outcome.

In terms of them even getting the ball, why wasn't it a jump ball? If a whistle blows a play dead, why do they factor in who caught the ball on a dead play when nobody is going for it? That felt weird too. If you want to reward IND with the challenge, fine, but that's a jump ball in my opinion. 

At the end of the day, it's one loss in early January. Things are fine. But what's still concerning is how the Celts lost. Bad third quarter, TOs, missed FTs etc. Those are things that aren't exactly new problems, and they all showed up at a pretty bad time. I can say with certainty that if we see stuff like that against MIN/MIL, it wouldn't shock me if we get a similar result. We all know NBA refs cannot be trusted, so I would prefer a world where the Celts don't even give them an opportunity to make an impact on the result.

Last night they didn't, and it ultimately bit them in the ass.