The Boston Celtics were rolling, up 21 and in the midst of a massive 50-11 run that was breaking the game open in Phoenix. The Suns were desperate for anything that was going to give them momentum, and it looked like they were about to get it. Jamaree Bouyea picked up a loose ball and raced up the right slot.
When the season started, rare were those who expected the Phoenix Suns and the Celtics to be competing for playoff spots in their respective conferences.
The Nuggets won at Boston in early January without their best player. The Celtics will try to even the score potentially without their top scorer on Wednesday night when they visit Denver.
The Celtics didn’t just win Tuesday night. They made a statement. Without Jaylen Brown nursing a knee contusion, Boston could have stumbled. Instead, they delivered one of their most complete performances of the season, dismantling the Phoenix Suns 97-81 at Footprint Center.
How many of the NBA All-Star Game MVP Award -- officially named the Kobe Bryant Trophy in 2020 -- in the three-point era (1979-80) can you name in five minutes?
When the Boston Celtics acquired Nikola Vučević at February’s NBA trade deadline, it gave them options. Adding Vučević provided Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla the flexibility to lean on the two-time All-Star, roll with a double-big lineup, or bring him off the bench behind Neemias Queta — the plan Boston has used to acclimate Vooch.
The NBA is a league built on the backs of its stars. Every now and then, guys in the NBA will raise their play to All-Star level, and sometimes, that run only lasts for one season.
Nothing really jumps off the page with a quick glance at the box score of the Celtics’ total eclipse of the Suns. The team shot just 40% from the field, including a dismal 13-of-47 from beyond the arc.
PHOENIX — Late in the third quarter of the Celtics 97-81 win over the Phoenix Suns, Payton Pritchard turned the ball over. Suns two-way player Jamaree Bouyea dribbled furiously down the court, while Baylor Scheiermman stayed in front of him, keeping his arms raised, but avoiding any contact.
The Boston Celtics were supposed to be a non-factor without Jayson Tatum, but their 38-19 record tells a different story. Reggie Miller says the league should be on high alert, and for those who think they don’t have a chance with only Jaylen Brown, desperately seeking Tatum’s return, the Indiana Pacers legend has something to say.
Good players tend to succeed in the NBA. Sometimes, though, they find themselves in terrible situations but still find ways to over-achieve. These are the 20 players who carried the worst NBA teams.
Derrick White scored 22 points, Neemias Queta had 14 points and 13 rebounds, and the visiting Boston Celtics rolled over the short-handed Phoenix Suns 97-81 to extend their winning streak to four.
The Celtics did not shoot the ball well in the first half, but that did not prevent them from blowing out the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night in a 97-81 win that was headlined by their defense, 22 offensive rebounds and a really big Derrick White game for their 3rd straight win of the road trip.
PHOENIX — Ron Harper Jr. will start his second game of the season when the Celtics face the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night. The Celtics are without Jaylen Brown, who is out with a right knee contusion, and Harper is slotting into the starting lineup alongside Derrick White, Baylor Scheierman, Sam Hauser, and Neemias Queta.
The Boston Celtics have been one of the great surprise stories of the season. Much of the credit for that success goes to head coach Joe Mazzulla. Tonight they play another surprise team in the Phoenix Suns, led by Jordan Ott.
NBA on NBC analyst Reggie Miller is high on the Boston Celtics’ potential in the playoffs. In a recent appearance on the Dan Patrick Show , Miller praised the Celtics’ Jaylen Brown for stepping up during Tatum’s absence and highlighted the depth of the team.
PHOENIX — Baylor Scheierman has been living out one childhood dream after another. The 25-year-old Celtics guards played 29 minutes in Sunday’s game between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers, and reflected on the experience at shootaround on Tuesday morning in Phoenix.
Let’s face it, late February is usually the part of the NBA season where things get a little sleepy. The trade deadline hype is over, the All-Star break is now in the past, and everyone is just waiting for the real games to start in April.
Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla was not bothered by Pat Riley’s trash talk toward his team on Sunday. If anything, it was the opposite. The Los Angeles Lakers unveiled a statue of Riley prior to Sunday’s rivalry game with Boston at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, and honored his contributions to the franchise.
The Boston Celtics are enjoying an impressive season, and while it is not surprising to see them holding the second seed in the Eastern Conference this deep into the year, the way they have done it stands out. Boston cut payroll this past offseason and has played the entire season without superstar Jayson Tatum.
Joe Mazzulla kept reporters and Boston Celtics fans alike guessing Sunday when asked about Jayson Tatum. The buzz surrounding Tatum’s return grew earlier this month when the Celtics star practiced with Boston’s G League affiliate, the Maine Celtics.
The Celtics will get back to the required roster minimum by converting two-way player John Tonje to a 10-day contract, agents George Roussakis and Mark Bartelstein tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).