BOSTON – Everyone knew the deal. The Cleveland Cavaliers entered Tuesday’s game against the reigning champions with a 15-0 record, the second-best start to a season in history, and it was an NBA Cup game.
“We knew it,” Boston Celtics guard Derrick White said. “Everyone knew it.”
In front of a national television audience, the Celtics reminded the Cavaliers that the Eastern Conference still passes through Boston. They made five of their first eight 3-point attempts, took an 18-8 lead midway through the first quarter and never trailed again in a 120-117 victory. Cleveland never gave up.
Boston increased its lead to 65-48 at halftime, making nine more 3-pointers on 11 attempts in the second quarter. We could call it a bombing if it weren’t. This is what the Celtics do. His 51.1 3-point attempts lead the league at almost six per game. Even with an average conversion rate, they are making almost 20 threes a night. Make it 22 on Tuesday. You better stay up to date if you ever want the math to work in your favor.
The Cavs couldn’t. They shot 10 of 29 from deep and, as a result, were uphill all night. This was a deviation from their norm. They have been playing faster and more freely under new head coach Kenny Atkinson, who learned in his time with the Golden State Warriors that the ball should never be hit.
Except he did it against Boston. “It’s not great,” Atkinson said of his team’s preparation.
“The first thing we learned was strength and physique,” he added. “They had strength and physicality in the playoffs; we had strength and physicality in the regular season. And that’s why we were down by 17 points at the half.”
They responded in the second half, cutting a 21-point deficit to 86-84 seven minutes into the third quarter. In part, the Celtics settled for contested 3-pointers rather than creating open shots. Most of it was the Cavaliers pounding the paint. Whether Donovan Mitchell took Neemias Queta off the dribble or Cleveland’s bigs put in smaller defenders, the Cavs outscored Boston inside 60-36.
Credit goes to Cleveland for not conceding the undefeated record, but the Celtics also answered that call.
“It’s simple: We just focused on defense,” said Boston’s Jayson Tatum, who finished with 33 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists. “We’ve been in that situation a million times where it’s time to win.”
They did so, which could be interpreted as a bad sign for the Cavaliers, who viewed this game as a measure of their seriousness as contenders. But Evan Mobley came to a different conclusion.
“From what I saw, we could beat anyone,” Cleveland’s rising star said.
Is that feeling different than last year, when Boston beat Cleveland in a second-round playoff series?
“Not really,” added Mobley (22 points, 11 rebounds). “Last year I felt the same way. We were there. We lost the series, but most of the games we were there with them the whole time.”
Can beat the Celtics and willpower Beating the Celtics are two different things. As much positivity as the Cavaliers gained from their first loss of the season, there’s this: Boston will soon re-sign All-Star center Kristaps Porzingis, who opens up another dimension for a team that won a title largely without him.
The Celtics assigned Porzingis to their G League affiliate on Monday. Instead of sending him to Maine, they brought the entire development team to Porzingis so he could simulate serious game action for the first time since his surgery, sources told Yahoo Sports. Attendees were satisfied with his performance, which is a) what is expected of anyone who conveys that information and b) better than the alternative.
Either way, Porzingis’ return is now a matter of weeks, not months, even if he may not be available when these two teams meet again on December 1. That is the next measuring stick. This one fell short for the Cavs, who look different than last season but are still a level below the fully healthy version of the reigning champions.