On Tuesday, Vucevic joined the Celtics for a rare in-season practice, where schemes that had mostly been confined to a computer screen were more tangible. It was a useful primer, and the results were seen Wednesday night, when Vucevic appeared more in lockstep with his new team and sparked a 124-105 win over his old one.
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Afterward, coach Joe Mazzulla praised Vucevic’s pick-and-roll positioning on defense, as well as his ability to make proper reads on offense.
“It’s always good to get out and practice and be able to do that, and he values the details and wants to get it right,” Mazzulla said. “So he put a lot of preparation into it and looked much better tonight. … We were able to slow down and just practice it, and I think nothing beats that like getting on the court and being able to go live vs. each other and be in those positions.”
Vucevic finished with 19 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 assists in just 26 minutes. His passing skills were on display when he fed a cutting Jordan Walsh for a pair of baskets, and he put stress on Chicago’s defense by hitting 4 of 5 3-pointers.
“It helped a lot, finally having some time to go through stuff,” Vucevic said. “A little more detail, more reps, that always helps. … I think tonight was a good step forward of where we can get to, and I felt a lot more comfortable out there. I think the guys felt more comfortable around me and we were able to build some good chemistry, so it was a good step forward.”
Payton Pritchard scored a game-high 26 points for the Celtics and Jaylen Brown added 24. Jordan Walsh, who entered the night with just 10 points this month, scored 16 off the bench, with several coming on the high-energy steals and putbacks the Celtics want from him.
“I had said a while ago that I’m trying to find my pockets to be more aggressive,” Walsh said. “I felt like today, obviously I took those opportunities, but also, I felt like people were looking for me to make those plays.”
The Celtics shot 51.6 percent from the field and made 18 of 45 3-pointers.
Last Thursday, the team traded high-scoring guard Anfernee Simons to the Bulls in exchange for Vucevic to help bolster their frontcourt depth. It was just a coincidence that the two teams met just one week later.
Anfernee Simons had 7 points in his first game against the Celtics since being traded to the Bulls on Thursday.Erin Clark/Globe Staff
Simons, who embraced his sixth-man role on the Celtics and was eager to experience a deep playoff run for the first time in his career, received a warm ovation when the starting lineups were introduced Wednesday.
He scored 5 points in the opening four minutes, but mustered just a pair the rest of the game. Later, Mazzulla shared his appreciation for Simons’s contributions during his brief stint in Boston.
“We wouldn’t be in the position that we’re in right now if he didn’t help us win games,” he said. “So I think the humility and mindset that he brought into the role that we needed him to play, but also keep the confidence in who he is as a player.”
The Bulls took an early 16-11 lead, but their night turned sour shortly after that.
The Celtics’ surge began when Brown was joined by an all-bench group of Vucevic, Pritchard, Hugo Gonzalez, and Ron Harper Jr. Boston trailed, 23-22, when it uncorked a quick 9-0 run.
The Celtics hit their last five shots of the opening quarter and finished it 14 for 26 from the field and 6 for 11 from the 3-point line, giving them a 36-27 lead. It seemed problematic for Chicago that it trailed by a wide margin despite making half of its shots.
The Celtics turned up their defensive pressure in the second quarter, and the game quickly got out of reach.
Walsh took the ball from Simons and raced in for a dunk that made it 40-27, and two 3-pointers by Sam Hauser stretched it to a 32-8 run and gave the Celtics a 54-31 lead. Boston took a 72-44 advantage to the break and never let the Bulls even consider a comeback.
The Celtics (35-19) enter the All-Star break second in the Eastern Conference, with the addition of Vucevic and the possibility of Tatum’s eventual return igniting fresh optimism.
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.