Celtics crank up offense to record levels while awaiting Tatum return
BOSTON—The Celtics have been one of the NBA’s hottest teams since returning from the All-Star break.
They can add one of the best offensive performances in league history to their list of accomplishments as they await a possible return of star Jayson Tatum to action.
Boston shot a season-high 66.7 percent (52 of 78) from the field in their 148-111 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Friday. It was the second-best field goal percentage in team history, falling just short of the 67.9 percent they shot against the Golden State Warriors on Nov. 21, 1984.
The Celtics also shot 64.7percent from the 3-point line on Friday, which equated to an 80.8% effective field goal percentage—the highest in NBA history. Effective field goal percentage measures shooting efficiency by adjusting for the fact that 3-pointers are worth more than two-point shots
All-Star Jaylen Brown led the way, finishing with 28 points, nine assists and seven rebounds. But he got plenty of support from his teammates, with trade deadline acquisition Nikola Vucevic adding 28 points and 11 rebounds for his third double-double as a member of the Celtics.
“I thought we just did a good job reading the game,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. “I thought we made the right reads throughout most of the entire game. I thought tonight, Vooch really looked comfortable in his offensive reads and his offensive screening. He unlocked a lot of stuff for us.”
All 13 Celtics players scored in the game, with Boston committing only three turnovers after halftime.
Boston, winners of five of its six games since the All-Star break, will now wait to see if Sunday night’s home matchup with the Philadelphia 76ers will mark the return of Tatum.
The game, originally scheduled to be played earlier in the day, was moved by NBC into an 8 p.m. primetime slot, creating speculation that it could signal Tatum’s plan to return.
