Doc Rivers wasn’t the one Celtics champion patrolling the guests’ bench Monday night time at TD Backyard.
The Milwaukee Bucks head coach had a fellow 2008 champ with him: Rajon Rondo.
After what Rivers described as years of persuading, Rivers satisfied the previous Boston level guard to affix his employees on a part-time foundation this season. Rondo’s precise position with the Bucks nonetheless is nebulous, however Rivers stated it didn’t take lengthy for the job to attract the 38-year-old in.
“I knew he would coach if he needed to try this,” stated Rivers, who coached Rondo with the Celtics from 2006 to 2013. “He undoubtedly has the smarts. He’s the neatest participant I’ve ever coached. It’s been a two-year factor of me attempting to get him to do it. … He’s bought a son who’s a extremely gifted basketball participant, and he’s working with him, so we’re crafting out a schedule proper now to attempt to give him sufficient time to be there and to be with us.
“However one factor I can let you know, simply via coaching camp that he spent (with the Bucks), he’s hooked now. He loves it. It’s in him, and as soon as it will get in you, it could possibly’t get out of you. In order that was my purpose, after which the following steps are no matter occurs.”
The Celtics had three extra members of the ’08 championship group again on the town final week, with Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen all collaborating within the banner-raising ceremony forward of Boston’s season-opening win over the New York Knicks.
Whereas the main focus of that night time was celebrating the Jayson Tatum- and Jaylen Brown-led 2023-24 group that introduced Boston its 18th NBA title, it additionally was a second of closure for the Huge Three – definitive proof that Pierce and Garnett had squashed their long-standing beef with Allen over his 2012 resolution to affix the Miami Warmth.
The trio evidently was keen to point out Rivers they had been again on good phrases. The ex-Celtics coach stated Pierce, Garnett and Allen all individually despatched him a photograph of them collectively on the ceremony.
“That was superior,” Rivers stated. “… It’s wonderful. The individuals who have been right here on this room perceive it. It’s cool, every man despatched me that image individually. I feel they had been attempting to inform me, ‘Hey, have a look at us! We get alongside!’ I don’t know what it was, however it was hilarious. I bought a bing (on my telephone), then I bought a bing, then I bought a bing.
“It was fairly humorous. It was cool to see, although. It wanted to be seen and performed. There’s numerous cities, and this metropolis profitable is fairly particular, little doubt about that.”
Tatum honored
Tatum’s torrid begin earned him the primary Japanese Convention Participant of the Week award of the younger season. It was the eleventh weekly honor of him profession, second-most in Celtics historical past behind Paul Pierce (17) and Larry Hen (15).
The Celtics star entered Monday averaging 33.0 factors, 6.3 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.3 steals per sport via three contests. He seems to have repaired to have fastened the taking pictures points that hindered him through the playoffs and the Olympics, and he hasn’t been shy about showcasing these enhancements.
Over Boston’s first three video games – all Celtics wins – Tatum averaged 11.7 3-point makes an attempt and 5.7 made threes for a 3-point taking pictures proportion of 48.6%. Three video games is a very small pattern measurement, however all three of these marks would shatter Tatum’s single-season profession highs of 9.3, 3.2 and 43.4%, respectively.
Tatum additionally led the NBA in win shares through the opening week, per Basketball-Reference, with the Lakers’ Anthony Davis rating second and Celtics teammate Derrick White in sixth. Davis, the one NBA participant with extra factors scored than Tatum’s 99 getting into Monday, was the Western Convention Participant of the Week.
“I identical to that he’s taking part in balanced basketball,” head coach Joe Mazzulla stated earlier than the Celtics’ 119-108 win. “His potential assists are up. He’s not screening as a lot as a result of he’s dealing with. He’s making some good choices in choose and roll versus completely different coverages, so we’ll get to that ultimately. However only a balanced assault on each ends of the ground and an excellent consciousness to how he’s being guarded and dealing to to seek out the place the benefits, the place the 2-on-1 is.
“He’s ok to impression the sport each night time in all statistical areas. He’s bought to maintain doing that.”
One other milestone is on the horizon for Tatum. He’s fewer than 50 factors away from changing into the thirteenth Celtics participant ever to achieve 12,000 for his profession. The 26-year-old was the youngest in franchise historical past to affix the ten,000-point membership when he hit that mark final November, unseating Antoine Walker.
Hauser sits once more
Reserve wing Sam Hauser (decrease again ache) missed his third consecutive sport, matching his DNP whole from all of final season.
To interchange the off-the-bench sharpshooter, Mazzulla has employed extra double-big lineups involving Al Horford, Luke Kornet, Xavier Tillman and Neemias Queta (who had a considerable position final Thursday towards Washington however didn’t play Saturday in Detroit).
With Tillman arriving halfway via final season, Queta spending a lot of final yr within the G League and beginning middle Kristaps Porzingis at present unavailable, a few of these items haven’t seen a lot sport motion collectively.
“I feel our offense remains to be adapting to a few these,” Mazzulla stated. “… Our defensive system is somewhat bit difficult in terms of the double-big items.”
Mazzulla went with a special strategy towards Milwaukee, plugging Jordan Walsh into the Hauser spot for the primary time. Walsh missed two open threes early however was efficient late within the third quarter because the Celtics broke the sport open. He grabbed three rebounds, tipped in a missed Derrick White 3-pointer and was a plus-10 in his 12 minutes.
“I advised that to Jordan within the locker room: I feel simply discovering out a job and making big-time performs like that’s big,” Mazzulla stated. “… You need to win video games like that, particularly towards good groups.”
Porzingis, who’s recovering from offseason leg surgical procedure, bought some photographs up throughout pregame warmups. He’s not anticipated to return till December on the earliest, however the Celtics have been happy along with his progress.
Off the rim
Veteran wing Lonnie Walker IV, who was lower after the preseason, selected to not be part of the Celtics’ G League affiliate, in accordance with a report from Boston Sports activities Journal’s John Karalis. Walker, a seventh-year professional with 322 video games of NBA expertise, may pursue alternatives abroad. … Rivers’ scouting report on the Celtics, one in all 4 undefeated groups within the NBA getting into Monday’s matchup: “They’re a made basketball group proper now. They play with out obstacles. Successful that title has taken them to a different degree. You possibly can really feel it after they play. They’ve full belief within the go. They belief one another. They play collectively. There’s no person within the league that does it higher than them proper now, they usually’re exhibiting it each night time.”
Initially Printed:
