Can you believe what went down last night in Detroit? The Boston Celtics, on their season opener, absolutely fumbled a cozy 22-point lead against the Pistons, eventually losing 121-113. Seriously, how do you even let that happen?
The Wheels Fell Off, And Fast
It started so well, too. Paul George was on fire, dropping a monstrous 38 points and setting Boston up for what looked like an easy victory lap. They had built that sweet 22-point cushion, with their defense locking down Detroit to just 45 points on 38.6 percent shooting in the first half. The Pistons struggled big time to get any offense going. But then, it was like a totally different game after halftime. Detroit, clearly not wanting to be embarrassed on their home court for Opening Night, just kept hammering away at Boston’s mistakes. That same Celtics defense that looked so good in the first half? It gave up a staggering 76 points in the second half. Seventy-six!
An Unbelievable Collapse and Tatum’s Stark Reality Check
The real gut punch came in the fourth quarter. The Pistons went on an unreal 23-0 run in under five minutes. A TWENTY-THREE NOTHING run. That’s not a typo. It was the largest come-from-behind victory over the Celtics for Detroit in 30 seasons, according to ESPN Insights. The script totally flipped. Detroit started shooting lights out, hitting 52.4 percent from the field in the third and fourth quarters, including 11 threes. Javonte Green, their former teammate, was a huge part of that, draining five 3-pointers and racking up 19 points in the second half.
You could see the frustration building. Boston was held scoreless for more than five of the last eight minutes. Jayson Tatum tried to stop the bleeding, but his layup missed, and on the other end, Green popped a wide-open 3-pointer. Tatum, who couldn’t get back to contest Green’s shot, didn’t mince words after the game. He told reporters, “I think our communication has to be better.” He knows it. He also mentioned that the offensive struggles were killing them, giving Detroit easy fast break points. “It probably started on defense,” Tatum added. “A couple of times we gave up the offensive rebound, they were scoring, we were fouling. That kind of slows the game down. Obviously, in the first half and early in the third, we were at our best when we were getting stops, and we were able to push the pace.” He wasn’t exactly sparking offensively himself in that second half, going 1-for-10 from the floor and 6-for-23 overall. Tough night.
Even after all that, Paul George somehow managed to hit his seventh 3-pointer, cutting Detroit’s lead to six at 116-110 with just 41 seconds left. They almost clawed their way back one more time! But it wasn’t enough. What a brutal way to kick off the season. Communication and defense are clearly front and center for Boston moving forward. This is just opening night, but that kind of loss leaves a mark.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Celtics Blog.
Leave a Reply