The Celtics won their third straight game on Tuesday night, this time with a new-look starting five. Boston brought Payton Pritchard off the bench for the first time all season and cruised to a 110-100 win over a shorthanded Mavericks squad.
The starting lineup change came following the Celtics agreeing to trade Anfernee Simons to the Bulls for Nikola Vucevic on Tuesday afternoon. The reserve guard did not suit up despite the trade for Vucevic not becoming official just yet. However, his absence did lead to Pritchard moving to a reserve role as he served as the second unit’s primary ball hander. Baylor Scheierman got the start in place of Pritchard.
Pritchard (26 points, 7 assists) showed no problems with the adjustments as he led the way along with Jaylen Brown (33 points, 11 rebounds) to the comfortable win. The visitors steadily added to their lead each of the first three quarters, pushing their advantage to as many as 23 points in the second half. It was the third straight double-digit win for Boston.
The Mavericks were led by rookie phenom Cooper Flagg with a game-high 36 points in the setback but the 19-year-old got little help from his teammates. No one else on the Mavericks roster scored more than 13 points in the loss.
Boston now heads to Houston for a matchup against the Rockets in a back-to-back Wednesday night.
Here are four takeaways from the Celtics’ win on Tuesday:
Payton Pritchard has an easy adjustment back to bench: The point guard has always been a selfless player in Boston but last year’s Sixth Man of the Year picked up where he left off as a reserve. He set tone off Boston’s bench all night, carve up the Mavericks defense inside the arc by knocking down 10 of his 12 attempts from 2-point range. He also added seven assists in his 35 minutes so he played his usual minutes, just at a different point of the game. Joe Mazzulla told reporters he was unsure about keeping Pritchard coming off the bench but the move worked well out of the gate.
Luka Garza makes case for minutes despite new addition: Nikola Vucevic is still not officially a Celtic yet but the big man will certainly be looking to join Boston’s center rotation in the coming days once the deal becomes official. Some of his minutes will come at the expense of Luka Garza but the reserve center played one of his best games Tuesday night in wake of the deal. Garza scored 16 points in 20 minutes, going an efficient 6-of-8 from the field while also chipping in with four rebounds and two steals. He’s been a steady contributor off the bench for the last two months now and Tuesday’s play was a reminder that he may still be a part of the rotation even after Vucevic arrives.
Jaylen Brown’s getting after it on the glass: The All-Star’s offense remained stellar in Dallas but his work on the glass should be getting more attention in recent weeks. Brown finished with 11 rebounds in 37 minutes on Tuesday night, his second straight double-double for Boston. He now has five double-doubles in his last eight games and has grabbed seven or more rebounds in his last eight games. That’s a stellar streak considering he’s averaging just 6.9 rebounds per game this year. That performance has helped turned a weak spot for Boston to begin the year (defensive rebounding) into a strength.
Cooper Flagg is the real deal: The Maine native put on an offensive show against Boston, putting up 36 points on 50 percent shooting while getting to the free throw line 11 times. He already looks like a superb No. 1 option in Dallas even though his injury-riddled roster isn’t giving him much help. Dallas should look to find more young talent to put around him since he looks like a franchise cornerstone for years to come.
