1. Jayson Tatum is Back
To quote author Mark Twain: “The report of my death was an exaggeration.” This quote is applicable to Jayson Tatum, who after a tough performance against the Detroit Pistons where he finished with 13 points and 11 assists on 6-27 shooting from the field and 0-7 from three, was getting lit up across social media. In this game against the defending champion New York Knicks, Tatum responded to all of the scrutiny with 36 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 steals on 14-26 shooting from the field and 3-10
from three.
Early in the game, Tatum’s three point shot wasn’t falling, so he decided to attack the basket. In the Detroit game we saw Tatum not look as aggressive to get to the paint and when he did get there, he missed a few point blank layups. That was not the case for him against New York, he was able to get to the paint with ease and end with some impressive finishes. Tatum put on a clinic in the second half, finishing with 25 points on 9-15 shooting including his own personal 7-0 run at the end of the fourth quarter that sealed the win for Boston.
Maybe, Jayson Tatum isn’t the worst person to ever pick up a basketball after a subpar performance in the first game of the season. That’s just a thought I’d like to throw out there. This was a vintage Jayson Tatum put on display for the world to see tonight and I can’t wait to see what else he can do this season.
2. Paul George Defense
In the preseason, we saw Paul George’s defense on full display, picking up 7 steals in the two games he played in. Through two regular season games, George has matched that number after he had 5 in Detroit and 2 against the New York Knicks in this game. The best part about watching George play defense is that it feels like he knows where the ball is going before it gets there.
Much like Spider-Man and his Spidey Sense, Paul George is able to break up plays by putting his body in passing lanes that result in either a steal or a turnover. We saw that sense come into play against the Knicks on this play when Brunson ran around Towns at the top of the key, George stood right where he he would be receiving the ball, resulting in a steal for the Celtics.
George was also a nice complementary piece to the Celtics offense, finishing with 15 points on 6-15 shooting but his defense is where I find the most joy watching him. This is the thing that will make Paul George a fan favorite in Boston. The defense, hustle plays, and willingness to do the dirty work is what makes a perfect Celtic and so far George has shown that he is going to put in the effort.
3. N33mias Qu3ta
Coming into this game, Neemias Queta was 1-11 in his career when it came to taking three pointers. It wasn’t a part of his game at all. On the offensive end he was known for being a back to the basket, pick and roll finisher with the occasional midrange push shot. But we are getting a brand new Neemias Queta in the 2026-27 season, as he has shown a willingness to put up a three when put in the situation to do so.
In this game against the Knicks, Queta had his first opportunity to to put his offseason training to work with under two minutes to go in the third quarter. Tatum found him in the corner for a wide open look at the basket and with no hesitation, Queta put up the shot and swished it home. TD Garden erupted, the Celtics bench was loving it, and Queta was able to pull out his new three-point celebration.
This was such a cool moment for Queta and Tatum said it was his favorite play of the game in his postgame press conference. “I knew somebody was in the corner, but to his credit, him and Ross, one of the coaches, like Neemi’s worked on being a threat around the three-point line, like he works on that every single day, and to me that was that was my favorite part of the game.”
4. Jordan Walsh is a Starter
There was a lot of speculation around the Celtics starting lineup going into this season and there were a lot of questions about it going into this matchup. Jordan Walsh was the fifth starter over Payton Pritchard and there were a lot of skeptics after he didn’t have a noteworthy performance against Pistons. However, this game might have cracked the code to Joe Mazzulla’s thought process of putting Walsh into the starting lineup and it had to do with defending Jalen Brunson.
For most of the game it felt like Walsh was the primary defender on Brunson and he made the reigning Finals MVP feel like a non-factor. Brunson finished with 19 points on 7-17 shooting and most of the time he was getting hounded up the court by a guy like Walsh or Scheierman. That would lead to Brunson just passing it or taking a bad shot that would lead to a Celtics fast break opportunity.
On offense Walsh was also solid with his opportunities, finishing with 5 points on 2-5 shooting. Although he missed out on a career highlight when he broke Jordan Clarkson ankles and smoked the layup, Walsh hit a three and finished a fast break at the beginning of the third quarter to start a Celtics rally. It might be an unorthodox fit at times but it feels like Walsh being in the starting lineup to guard the opposing teams best player to start is a smart move and I think he will continue to thrive in that role.
5. Derrick White Shooting
There was a lot made about Derrick White’s shooting coming into this season coming off career worst percentages last year. White said on Media Day that he feels like he fixed his shooting and we saw a little bit of it on display against the Knicks. White finished with 12 points, 6 assists, and 4 rebounds on 5-11 shooting from the field and 2-6 from three.
On the court it felt like he was the offensive connector for Boston. When the ball was in his hands good things happened. White was 3-3 shooting in the first half with a myriad of floaters including a tough bucket with Jordan Clarkson in his face. The second half saw him be more aggressive from beyond the arc, nailing two threes. The stat sheet won’t show it but White had a great offensive night and I will be happy if we continue to get his version of him throughout the season.
6. Mitchell Robinson Revenge Game
Mitchell Robinson spent the first 8 seasons of his career with the New York Knicks and was a key player in their championship run last season. In this game, he faced his former team for the first time as a member of the Celtics and was primed for a revenge game. Due to being in foul trouble he didn’t get to play a lot of minutes but he still made his presence known, finishing with 4 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 block on 2-4 shooting.
Robinson made his mark in the fourth quarter of this game with a sequence I’m sure the Knicks have seen plenty of times. Midway through the quarter, Karl-Anthony Towns tried to drive past Robinson and put up an off balanced shot. Robinson denied that request by spiking it into the first row for a block. On the next Celtics offensive possession, Derrick White found him on the pick and roll for a monster slam that resulted in New York calling a timeout.
These are the types of plays I love seeing from Mitchell Robinson and it was the exact reason why Boston signed him in the first place. His rolling and finishing ability at his size is special and we have seen throughout the first two games that it feels like he is developing a lot of chemistry with Derrick White. On defense we know he is a vicious paint protector and even when he was on the perimeter against Towns he was able to hold his own. I feel like if he didn’t get into foul trouble early we could have seen a big time performance but I still think he did a great job showing the Knicks what they are missing out on.
7. Luka Garza Impact
Luka Garza had an incredible preseason for the Celtics this year and it made me think that Joe Mazzulla was going to find him a spot in this rotation. He struggled a bit in the first game of the season against the Pistons but got another opportunity early in the second quarter. With Queta and Robinson picking up 2 fouls in the first quarter, Garza came in to sure up the five position for the Celtics to finish up the quarter and start the second. In his first three minutes on the court, we saw him hit 2 threes, a put-back layup, get a steal, and draw a charge.
It was an incredible to witness as the crowd applauded Garza’s performance. He didn’t play the rest of the game after his short burst of energy but it shows how deep this Celtics team really is. Luka Garza could be a legitimate backup center for a good amount of teams in the NBA and Boston has the luxury of having him as their third center. Garza came up huge when his number was called and really kept the Celtics in the game when there was a chance it could get away from them early.
8. Sam Hauser Solid Contributor
Coming into this season it felt like there wasn’t a lot of talk around Sam Hauser. After a bad playoff shooting performance, it felt like he could possibly be traded away from the Celtics this offseason. However, he is still here and Boston is lucky to have him. Hauser finished with 6 points on 2-5 shooting from three in this game but it felt like he was incredibly import to the Celtics offense.
With Hauser on the floor, Boston has a 40% three point shooter that can be lurking anywhere on the perimeter. That is a lingering fear in the back of the mind of the defense when you also have to deal with guys like Jayson Tatum, Paul George, Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, Mitchell Robinson, and Neemias Queta as well. Hauser just always feels like the sure hand that you know will be automatic from three. Last season was the first time he shot under 40% from three and it was still 39.3%. We could be in store for another great shooting season by Sam Hauser this season and it might not show in the box score, but his importance to this team will not go unnoticed.
9. Three-Point Shooting Returned
One of the biggest reasons why the Celtics lost their first game of the season to the Pistons was because of their three point shooting in the fourth quarter as they finished going 3-11 from deep. The first quarter of this game saw Boston continue their icy shooting, shooting 3-11 again. But when Jayson Tatum hit a pull-up three at the end of the first quarter, it felt like Boston might have gotten their groove back, and spoiler alert, they did.
The Celtics finished shooting 15-39 (38.5%) from beyond the arc against the Knicks and 12-28 (43%) in the final three quarters. Boston found the most success with the corner three tonight as New York decided to just give the Celtics the shot and they converted, shooting 8-13. The biggest part about their three-point resurgence was that they stopped forcing up bad shots just because it was a three. Those are the kind of shots that drive Celtics fans crazy at times but Boston did a good job of pulling back and focusing on getting to the basket where the found success with 38 points in the paint. We know by now that the Celtics can win or lose games solely based on how well they shoot the three ball, but it was cool to see a different philosophy find success tonight.
10. Stopped the bleeding
It’s hard to say that the second game of the season was a “must-win” game for the but after the loss in Detroit, this game felt like a big one for sure. A marquee game against a hated rival and the defending champs in your home opener, there aren’t a lot of bigger moments than that this early in the season. Boston looked a lot more comfortable in this game when New York was mounting a comeback in the fourth quarter.
Jalen Brunson cut the Celtics lead to one point with 1:41 left in the game and the doubts started to creep in. However, Boston was able to stay composed, with Jayson Tatum taking over on offense and the defense forcing a big offensive foul on Karl-Anthony Towns with 1:11 left in the game, setting the Celtics up for success. This is the execution that Boston didn’t have in their last game.
When Joe Mazzulla was asked in his pregame press conference about holding leads, he said it was a very complex question but answered with, “Can you be great at the transitions and the momentum of it, as opposed to just thinking that you have to quote unquote put in the win, right? Can you be the master of the momentum? Can you be the master of returning points?” This is all I could think about when watching the end of this game. The Celtics were the masters of momentum and returned the necessary points needed to win. This was a great response by Boston as this was the team I thought we were going to get coming into the season.
