BOSTON — The Celtics clearly didn’t have much energy as the Pacers blitzed out in front Monday. The Indiana lead ballooned to 20 points off impressive shot-making, but the process was also off to open the second half. C’s coach Joe Mazzulla saw enough after Bennedict Mathurin got an easy tap-in bucket off a miss where nobody boxed him out.
Mazzulla took a calculated risk. He benched his starters after he called timeout just 2:38 into the second half. Mazzulla explained why he decided to make that crucial move that helped the Celtics to victory over the Pacers.
“We always talk about depth, and that we always have 12 or 13 guys that can be able to help us win games at any different moment,” Mazzulla said. “So I just thought it was a good opportunity to utilize the depth that we have, and you saw a game where depth comes in many different ways. And that’s it. At any point in time, everybody on our bench can impact winning, and so it’s just a great opportunity to take advantage of the depth that we have, and I thought those guys did a great job just kind of changing the pace of the game.”
Jaylen Brown, Payton Pritchard, Derrick White and Neemias Queta stayed on the bench coming out of the timeout. In came Anfernee Simons, Sam Hauser, Baylor Scheierman and Luka Garza. Hugo Gonzalez, who opened the second half with the starters, was the lone player allowed back into the game.
The move worked brilliantly. The reserves went on a 19-5 run as they outworked the Pacers and breathed life into the game. What was a huge deficit was down to single digits by the time a starter checked back into the game. What was a mostly-mum TD Garden crowd also woke up during that stretch, adding to the momentum.
Brown admitted he was frustrated by the move. He was ready to help the Celtics to a comeback, but instead, the reserves unexpectedly took over. The all-bench look is admittedly clunky on both sides of the ball. But it was what the Celtics needed in that moment — and they delivered.
“I was ready to play so I didn’t know,” Brown said. “It felt like we were mailing it in. It was only three minutes in, but we trust our coaching staff. So it was the right decision. That second group is the reason why we won the game. Garza, Sam, Hugo. We won tonight, but it was because of those guys. So it was a great call by Joe.”
Gonzalez was again incredible with his energy and defense. The rookie continues to look like a solid pro even though he’s just 19. Luka Garza also had another impactful game hitting the glass. Simons’ offense was crucial leading the charge. The all-bench look also put more pressure on Simons to produce, and he did just that.
There’s no denying the Celtics’ top-end talent — all those guys were crucial pieces to a championship squad. But these unproven guys were the reason why the Celtics won Monday as they stepped up down the stretch.
“Today was an example of, like, a team,” Mazzulla said. “You’re not always going to be at your best. Guys come in, they keep it close, they chip away, you come back, you guys do your job, and everybody’s responsible for winning. So I think it’s more of just kind of the guys, it’s a credit to them of having an understanding that anybody can impact winning at any time. ”