UJSL2017

Marc D'Amico

addByline("Marc D'Amico", "Celtics.com", "Marc_DAmico");

SALT LAKE CITY – Jaylen Brown didn’t play, and point guard availability was limited for Boston.  In the end, those two facts may have cost the Celtics a win Thursday night in Utah.

Boston, playing both without both Brown and Demetrius Jackson, watched its offense stall during crunch time as the Jazz stormed back from a 13-point deficit to capture a 68-65 win.

The Celtics led by 13 points after Abdel Nader canned a 3-pointer with 6:45 remaining in the third quarter.  Boston held onto an eight-point lead heading into the fourth quarter, but that’s when the Jazz found their rhythm.

Utah rallied around Dante Exum’s offense and Donovan Mitchell’s defense as it tied the game up less than three minutes into the final period.  Tony Bradley managed to dunk one home through Tatum’s defense to tie the game up at 56-56, and Utah took its first lead of the second half shortly thereafter.

Exum scored seven points during the fourth quarter, while Mitchell hounded Tatum with defense that ignited Utah’s offense.

“We made the point (to Mitchell): you can impact the game besides scoring and shooting,” acting Jazz head coach Alex Jensen said of Mitchell’s defensive impact.  “That’s what he did.  That was a big difference in the game.”

Thanks in large part to Mitchell’s efforts, Boston’s offense went cold during the fourth quarter, as it totaled only 11 points compared to Utah’s 22.  It surely missed the presence of Brown, who averaged 17.5 points per game through the first two contests of the week.

Such was a stark contrast to Boston’s first three quarters, during which Tatum and Nader helped to initiate a very successful offensive attack.

The Celtics scored 54 points on 48.7 percent shooting during the first three quarters of play.  Nader scored 17 of those points on 6-for-10 shooting, and Tatum added eight to go along with nine rebounds.

The duo totaled only three assists on the night, but acting head coach Jerome Allen was pleased with the way they jumpstarted the offense.

“I thought in spurts they executed the plan,” Allen said after the loss.  “I thought they tried to get our guys in the right spots and get us playing with the right pace.”

Nader finished the contest with a game-high 17 points.  Tatum, meanwhile tallied his second consecutive double-double, this one consisting of 12 points and 12 boards.

Allen did not tell the two youngsters that the offense would be running through them as they took on the Jazz, but Tatum was prepared for the challenge.

“He’s been switching it up,” Tatum said of Allen following the game.  “Before we came here he said guys were going to play different positions.  So I kind of expected it.  He’s just trying different things.”

Tatum said that he had one specific goal at the onset of the game when the ball was put into his hands.

“Just try to make the right play,” he commented.  “Just to get us going, because we had some tough stretches during the game.”

The toughest of stretches were undoubtedly during the second half, and in particular, during the fourth quarter.  Boston’s offense went silent, and the Jazz took advantage.

Utah, the hosts of the four-day Summer League, finished the week with an undefeated record of 3-0.  Boston, meanwhile, finished with a 1-2 record.

Both teams will head to Las Vegas for a second and lengthier stretch of play during the much larger-scale NBA Summer League, which will feature 24 teams.

The Celtics open up their stretch in Vegas at 8:30 p.m. Saturday night when they take on the rival Los Angeles Lakers on ESPN.

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Tatum, Nader Play PG, but 'O' Goes Silent During L

SALT LAKE CITY – Paul Pierce was always known as one of the top rebounding small forwards in the game.  Now, four summers after he departed the team, Boston’s two young wing prospects are trying to work toward a similar reputation.

Jaylen Brown grabbed 13 rebounds Monday night during Boston’s opening-game victory over the Philadelphia 76ers at the Utah Jazz Summer League.  After a day off for the Fourth of July, Jayson Tatum followed Brown’s effort up by grabbing 10 boards of his own Wednesday night against the San Antonio Spurs.

Boston is not a team that possesses a lot of size up front, and it does not have any players who are considered to be elite rebounders in the NBA.  That’s why Brad Stevens asked the team last season to rebound as a group rather than to rely on single players to dominate the glass.

As a result, shooting guard Avery Bradley (6.1 rebounds per game) and small forward Jae Crowder (5.8 RPG) finished second and third on the team in rebounding average behind Al Horford (6.8 RPG).

The Celtics need their guards and wings to rebound at a high level in order to succeed, and that’s the message the Summer League coaching staff is relaying to Brown and Tatum, who are known as 7-11 (Nos. 7 and 11, respectively), out West.

“What we’re trying to do is not deviate from the standard, just in terms of whether this is the Summer League or whether this is the start of the ’17-18 season,” said acting head coach Jerome Allen.  “What our standards are as the Boston Celtics is pretty much the message that we’re trying to deliver.

“I think Brad, whether he was coaching Summer League or whether he’s coaching in the fall, there’s certain things he’s just not going to waver from, so we’re just trying to emulate that.”

One of those things is having his perimeter players attack the glass.  Allen is confident that the NBA’s last to No. 3 overall picks, Brown and Tatum, are more than capable of fulfilling that request.

“I think all of our wings have the athleticism to kind of compete on the glass,” Allen said.  “We’re switching a number of different spots and different actions.  Just their activity, their aggressiveness, is something that we need.  So it’s good to see that the last two games those guys were rebounding the ball well.”

Following his 23-point, 10-rebound double-double Wednesday night, Tatum spoke of his interest in attacking the glass.  He equated it to doing the dirty work for Celtics.

“Just trying to be well-rounded,” he said of his 10 boards.  “Those are effort things: diving on the floor, rebounding; it doesn’t take skill to do those things.  I’m just giving the extra effort to help the team.”

Under the leadership of Stevens, the Celtics have become known around the league as a team that gives maximum effort every night they take the floor.  Tatum appears to be falling in line with that mentality, and we all know that Brown, who averaged 5.9 rebounds per 36 minutes as a rookie, is in that line as well.

Both of these young and talented players are unlikely to put up major statistical numbers in the rebounding department once the season gets underway, if only because they are unlikely to be logging 35 minutes a night.  This summer and next season, however, are in the heart of their development years.

These are the years during which Brown and Tatum can develop their knack and hunger for grabbing rebounds.  If they do so, the league could be looking at them as two of the top rebounding wings in the game within next handful of years.

7-11-combo-showing-strong-signs-on-the-glass

7-11 Combo Showing Strong Signs on the Glass

SALT LAKE CITY – Jayson Tatum played fantastic basketball Wednesday night for the second time in as many games, but he and the Celtics were unable to keep up with the San Antonio Spurs during an 81-70 defeat in Utah.

Tatum finished the contest with a double-double of 23 points and 10 rebounds.  However, San Antonio used a balanced offensive attack and an emphasis on 3-point shooting to put Tatum and the C’s away.

Four Spurs combined to hit 13 3-pointers on 28 attempts, good for a 46.4 percent clip.  San Antonio shot 11-for-22 from long range during the first three quarters as it opened up a 68-49 lead heading into the final period.

Bryn Forbes and Davis Bertans were the catalysts of San Antonio’s stellar performance from beyond the arc.  Forbes canned six of his eight 3-pointers en route to his game-high 31 points, while Bertans shot 4-for-8 from long distance.

“I think Forbes and I think Bertans, it’s documented that they’ve made shots in this league before,” said Celtics assistant coach Jerome Allen, who is acting as head coach of the team in Utah.  “As a staff we’ve probably got to do a better job of preparing our guys to pay a little more attention to those guys, but you’ve kind of got to give them credit as well.  They made shots.”

Boston just couldn’t keep pace with San Antonio’s ability to put the ball through the basket.  After a brief lead to open up the game, the C’s fell behind 5-4 and trailed from that point forward.

Forbes paced the Spurs with 14 points during the first half as the Spurs took a 43-34 lead into halftime.  He and Tatum, who totaled 15 points and six rebounds during the first half, were the top players on the floor during the opening half and beyond.

While Boston remained within striking distance for the majority of the night, San Antonio, on the back of Forbes’ play, built a comfortable lead during the third.  Forbes canned four 3s during the period, and the Spurs hit six overall, to pull ahead by 19 points heading into the final frame.

Tatum, Abdel Nader and Semi Ojeleye did their best to give the Celtics a shot as the fourth quarter unwound.  They combined to score 16 of Boston’s 21 points in the period and the C’s cut San Antonio’s lead down to nine, at 71-62, with 5:11 remaining when Tatum canned a jumper in the paint off of an entry pass from Ojeleye.

The Spurs, however, answered back immediately with their 12th 3-pointer of the game, off the hands of Bertans, to quickly push the lead back up to 12 with 4:48 remaining.  Their lead never dropped to fewer than 10 points from that moment on.

Forbes’ 31 points led the game, but Tatum put together the most complete performance of the night.  He notched his 23-point, 10-rebound performance while hitting 10 of his 18 shot attempts and while showcasing an inside-outside offensive game.

Nader, who finished with 14 points, was the only other notable performer for Boston.  Bertans totaled 14 points for San Antonio, and Derrick White came off the Spurs bench to contribute 10 points.

Both teams now stand with a 1-1 record heading into the final day of play Thursday night at the Huntsman Center at the University of Utah.  Boston will close out its three-game slate at 9 p.m. Wednesday night against the league’s host, the Utah Jazz.  San Antonio, meanwhile, will take on the Philadelphia 76ers at 7 p.m.

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Tatum Shines Again, but Spurs Down C's with 3s

SALT LAKE CITY – Jaylen Brown walked into Danny Ainge’s office right after Boston’s postseason came to an end and made a statement: I’m playing in the Summer League.

He took the court Monday night in Salt Lake City to begin the exhibition season and made another statement to everyone who watched him play: I’m dominating Summer League play.

Brown was unquestionably the top player on the floor as he dominated the Philadelphia 76ers en route to game highs of 29 points and 13 rebounds.  The game’s next-highest point total was 21 by teammate Jayson Tatum, and no member of the 76ers scored more than 17 points during Boston’s 89-88 win.

“I’ve been putting in a lot - a lot - of work, that nobody is seeing,” Brown told Celtics.com after the win.  “I just wanted to come out and make sure that people are seeing it.”

They did, so long as they had their eyes open.

Overall, he shot 10-for-16 from the field goals (10), 3-pointers (three) and free throws (six) than any other player in the game.

This is not the same guy who took the court for the Celtics a year ago as a rookie.  This guy is looking to lead his team while crushing the opponent.

“Last year when I was in this spot, I was so nervous,” he recalled Monday night of his first Summer League game.  “I think I shot 17 free throws and only had like 15 points, so I guess I got to the free-throw line a lot, but I was so nervous.”

There were no nerves Monday night.  Instead, Brown said, he felt ancious – anxious to show off what he’s added to his tool belt this summer, and to showcase what it looks like when he’s seeing red.

“On this team, the Summer League team, my job is to be a playmaker, to score the ball, to make plays for others, score in transition,” he stated confidently.  “So I’m going to do that.”

This is a more diverse version of Brown; one that doesn’t need to fall in line behind the likes of Isaiah Thomas, Avery Bradley, Al Horford, Jae Crowder and Co.  He’s the go-to guy for the Summer C’s.

It’s difficult for a go-to guy to impress a coach, if only because great things are expected from him, but that’s exactly what Brown is doing this summer.

“It’s just his strength, his athleticism, him hitting the deep ball, him posting up, we felt he could be making pull-ups in the paint,” said Jerome Allen, who is the acting head coach of the Summer Celtics.  “He made a number of different plays that one year ago at this point, he wasn’t making.”

Add it all together and Brown made the exact impression the Celtics and their fans base sought of him as Summer Play began: they wanted him to look like he didn’t belong in these games because he was too advanced.

Brown certainly looked that part Monday night.  He criticized himself for committing seven turnovers, but outside of that, he was outstanding.

He said he still has “a lot to work on for next game,” which will arrive at 7 p.m. Wednesday night when Boston takes on San Antonio.

For the sake of the Spurs, they’d better hope that this new and dominant version of Brown doesn’t up his game to yet another level before tip-off arrives.

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Dominant Brown Makes Opening Statement in SLC

SALT LAKE CITY – Jayson Tatum stole the spotlight from Jaylen Brown and Markelle Fultz Monday night by canning the game-winning jumper with 5.7 seconds left to give the Celtics an 89-88 win over the Philadelphia 76ers.

Tatum, who scored 11 points during the pivotal fourth quarter, said after the game that he just wanted to get back to familiar territory for his clutch shot attempt.

“The shot I made before, it was maybe a minute or a couple of possessions before, was in the same spot,” he told reporters with his quiet, subdued voice.  “So I was just trying to get back to the middle of the floor.”

Tatum took control of the ball near the left sideline between the mid-court line and the 3-point line with 15.0 seconds left on the clock and with Philadelphia leading 88-87.  He attacked his defender, Alex Poythress, off the dribble from there.

He used a quick in-and-out dribble with his right hand to create separation before rising up from about 18 feet and rattling home the jumper.

Celtics assistant coach Jerome Allen, who is serving as the team’s head coach in Salt Lake City, called the play for Tatum.  He didn’t know what Tatum would do with the ball, but he knew he wanted this year’s No. 3 overall pick to play in space and make the winning play via either the shot or the pass.

“I just felt like he was going to make the right basketball play, whether the ball went in or not,” Allen commented.  “Throughout the game, he posted up, he made 3s, he made pull-ups, he attacked the paint.  And I said at that point, his body of work up until that point was just what gave me kind of the confidence to say, ‘Jayson can do something with it.’”

Philadelphia had a chance to win the game following Tatum’s bucket, but No. 1 overall pick Fultz had his reverse layup blocked at the rim by Brown shortly before time expired.

Boston’s clutch victory didn’t come easy.  The team trailed by as many as 15 points late in the third quarter before it staged an incremental comeback.

Philadelphia owned an 11-point lead with less than 10 seconds left in the third period before Demetrius Jackson and Abdel Nader combined to score four points during the final 4.2 seconds of the frame.  Jackson scored two points off of a driving finger roll, and Nader then picked off the ensuing inbound pass and tossed in a floater as time expired to cut the deficit to 71-64.

That four-point swing gave the Celtics momentum, and they used it to their advantage during the early portions of the fourth quarter.

Tatum scored the first three points of the final period off of a running, and-one dunk shot, and Brown scored the next two points from the free-throw line to pull Boston to within 71-69.  Semi Ojeleye eventually tied the game up at 73-73 when he canned a 3-pointer with 8:12 left in the game off of a pass from Demetrius Jackson.

The teams went back and forth from there, as the contest remained a one-possession game for nearly all of the final eight minutes of the night before Tatum’s game-winning basket.

“I applaud them for getting down by double-digits and not hanging their head and just figuring it out,” Allen said of his players pulling off the comeback win.  “I told them it’s a series of one-possession games, and when we needed to get stops, we got stops.”

Tatum, playing in his first professional basketball game, finished the contest with 21 points, seven rebounds, five steals and three assists.  Brown, meanwhile, was the top performer of the night with his game-high totals of 29 points and 13 rebounds.

Fultz led the 76ers in scoring with 17 points, though he committed four turnovers while dishing out only one assist.  Timothe Luwawu-Caba added in 16 points of his own for Philadelphia.

Boston is now 1-0 in Salt Lake City, while Philadelphia fell to 0-1.  Both teams will be off Tuesday for the Fourth of July holiday.

The Celtics return to action at 7 p.m. Wednesday night when they take on the San Antonio Spurs.

UJSL2017

Tatum, Nader Play PG, but 'O' Goes Silent During L

7-11 Combo Showing Strong Signs on the Glass

Tatum Shines Again, but Spurs Down C's with 3s

Dominant Brown Makes Opening Statement in SLC

Tatum Drills Game-Winner To Push C's Past Sixers