A glance at the NBA.com team stats page shows multiple charts comparing two teams from a single game. The more color in a category provides a visual for how well a team outperformed its competitor.
The Celtics generated a lot of green Wednesday.
Playing their first home game in a week, Boston outdueled the Memphis Grizzlies to earn a 131-95 victory. The NBA’s team charts page painted its successful game plan, which included the Celtics winning the rebound battle by 17 boards, dishing out nine more assists and posting a 3-point percentage that nearly doubled their opponent’s mark.
It was a stellar offensive performance that helped Boston produce its most complete game of its young season. It had 10 players make at least one 3-pointer while recording a season-best 34 assists. It also allowed the fewest points this season.
Payton Pritchard headlined the Celtics’ box score with 24 points and nine assists. He was hyper-efficient from the floor, making eight of his 15 attempts with a 5-of-10 mark from 3-point range. He was a catalyst in the team running away from Memphis.
Here are five takeaways from the Celtics’ blowout win.
Lights out from the floor
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While the Celtics have remained inside the top 5 in the NBA for most field goals attempted per game, their shooting percentage has stayed near the bottom of the league.
Boston finally hit its shots, making 50 of its 99 attempts from the floor. It was the first time this season it shot at least 50% or better from the floor, a feat that it accomplished 24 times a year ago. That success carried over to behind the arc, where the team nailed 21 of its 51 3-pointers.
It was a welcome sight for the Celtics, whose 24.9 wide-open field goals – defined as the closest defender being six or more feet away from a shooter – are the seventh most in the NBA. Knocking down shots helped increase their assist total to a season-best 34 assists, an area that the Celtics currently rank 28th in the NBA.
White-hot offense?
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After plummeting down the NBA’s 3-point shooting stats to become one of the worst shooters at the outset of the season, Derrick White reminded everyone about the offensive impact he can make. White finished with 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting while dishing out four assists. He was effective from behind the arc, drilling three of his six attempts.
White has struggled to find his offensive identity through the first three weeks of the season. It has been a major hardship for the Celtics, who expected White to be one of their scoring leaders in Jayson Tatum’s absence. Wednesday was only the third time White scored at least 20 points, a mark he surpassed 17 times a season ago.
Fresh faces
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Head coach Joe Mazzulla inserted Jordan Walsh into his lineup for Josh Minott, who played almost 22 minutes off the bench after missing all of the second half against the 76ers on Tuesday.
Walsh flashed in his third career start – first of the season – by hitting three of his seven attempts, including a 1-of-3 mark from deep. He was useful on the glass, grabbing six rebounds.
The former second-round pick’s best sequence was blocking a layup from Jaren Jackson, sparking a fastbreak opportunity. Walsh ran down the left side of the floor to create enough space to receive the ball to drive to the basket, where he euro-stepped around a defender from a layup.
Minott was better off the bench, scoring nine points on a 4-of-8 clip from the floor.
Defense leads to offense
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The Celtics went cold from the floor midway through the second quarter, allowing the Grizzlies to get as close as three points.
Suddenly, the Celtics erupted on multiple scoring runs that allowed them to outscore the Grizzlies 33-20 in the second quarter. Fastbreak opportunities highlighted their success, as they attacked the basket for easy points. They finished with 14 points in transition and 44 paint points.
Boston’s defense didn’t let up for the entire game, limiting Memphis to a 33.7% mark from the field, including a 23.3% clip from deep.
Time for rest
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The Celtics are currently 11th in the Eastern Conference, as their 6-7 record has them a half-game beneath the Magic for the final play-in tournament spot.
That description of their season might be too harsh, according to advance stat metrics.
Boston’s offensive, defensive and net ratings are each among the ten best in the NBA, usually a clear indicator of a successful team. The franchise’s metrics generate 51.6 expected wins over an 82-game season and 8.2 expected wins through 13 contests, according to Clean the Glass.
Yet the Celtics are dramatically short of those projections. Their six wins place them at a -2.2 expected wins differential, the worst in the NBA.
Boston is one of four teams to play 13 games through the first three weeks of the season, doing so in 22 days. It will receive much-needed time off over the next three days ahead of a 3:30 p.m. tip-off Sunday against the Clippers.