Three things from Celtics-Bulls – CelticsBlog

Another match, another victory for the Boston Celtics. This time, against the Chicago Bulls, who shot 57.3% from the field. Despite this, Boston came away with a victory thanks to their three-point shooting and offensive rebounds.

Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday all sat out against Chicago, once again displaying Boston’s health priorities. Again, here are some niche observations.

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1. The Celtics defensive change

The key to being one of the best defensive teams in the league is connectivity. Boston has been on the same page all year, with a healthy dose of free safety play from Holiday.

Here, Coby White comes into the lane and puts Luke Kornet on him after a Nikola Vucevic screen.

Kornet cuts off White’s drive perfectly, so the Bulls guard is forced to take the ball away. Rather than follow him, Jayson Tatum simply picks White up again, and he’s forced to take a tough mid-range jumper.

Chicago is also responsible for this piece. Vucevic should have rolled harder, forcing Kornet to float between the two bodies. But Boston’s willingness to go back without even speaking is a very small, underrated detail of their defense.

This may seem obvious, and the Bulls may not have executed well, but the Celtics defense still deserves credit.

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2. High Tatum-White PnR

These are the type of plays fans have been begging the Celtics to make at the end of games.

Derrick White handles the ball by the logo, and Tatum goes all the way to run a high pick-n-roll. The Celtics’ other three players space the court out to the corners, giving them free rein in the middle of the court.

Ayo Dosunmu struggles in front of the screen, but because Tatum has him so high on the floor, he has plenty of space to work with. Torrey Craig anticipates another screen and tries to deny Tatum the ball, so he spins in front of him and into the lane.

White feeds him the ball on the drive, the whole defense sucks it in and Tatum hits Pritchard in the corner for a wide open three. A beautiful piece executed to perfection. Pritchard narrowly missed the shot.

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3. Oshae Brissett’s Hustle

With Boston’s myriad of absences, Oshae Brissett has earned additional playing time. And even if his offensive game is lacking, his dynamism has been enormous.

Offensive rebounds are obvious. He caught three against the Bulls. But it’s the little things that stand out even more.

On this play, the Bulls had a quick three-on-one break on a Tatum turnover. Brissett sprints down the floor, gets in front of Chicago and forces them to slow down.

By the time they got a photo, Tatum was back and sent them packing. Tatum gets the block on the stat sheet, but Brissett deserves credit for the save.