Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 33 points in their 120-117 victory Tuesday to end Cleveland’s 15-0 start to the season. (Photo by Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
BOSTON — Everyone knew the deal. The Cleveland Cavaliers entered Tuesday’s game against the reigning champions with a 15-0 record, second-best start to a season ever, and it was an NBA Cup game to boot.
“We knew,” said Boston Celtics guard Derrick White. “Everybody knew.”
In front of a national television audience, the Celtics reminded the Cavaliers that the Eastern Conference still runs through Boston. They made five of their first eight 3-point attempts, took an 18-8 advantage midway through the opening quarter and never trailed again in a 120-117 victory Cleveland never quit.
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Boston pushed its lead to 65-48 by halftime, making nine more 3-pointers on 11 attempts in the second quarter. We could call it a barrage if it were not so expected. This is what the Celtics do. Their 51.1 3-point attempts lead the league by almost six per game. Even at a middling conversion rate, they sink nearly 20 triples a night. Make it 22 on Tuesday. Better keep up if you ever want that math to work in your favor.
The Cavs could not. They shot 10-for-29 from deep and climbed uphill all night as a result. This was a deviation from their norm. They have been playing faster and with more freedom under new head coach Kenny Atkinson, who learned in his time with the Golden State Warriors that the ball should never stick.
Except it did against Boston. “Not great,” Atkinson said of his team’s preparedness.
“The first thing we learned was the force and physicality,” he added. “They had playoff force and physicality; we had regular-season force and physicality. And that’s why we were down 17 at the half.”
They responded in the second half, trimming a 21-point deficit to 86-84 over seven minutes of the third quarter. Some of it was the Celtics settling for contested 3s, rather than creating open ones. Most of it was the Cavaliers pounding the paint. Whether it was Donovan Mitchell taking Neemias Queta off the dribble or Cleveland’s bigs posting smaller defenders, the Cavs outscored Boston on the interior 60-36.
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Credit to Cleveland for not conceding the undefeated record, but the Celtics answered that call, too.
“It’s simple: We just locked in 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.”
So they did, which could be interpreted as a bad sign for the Cavaliers, who considered this game a measuring stick of their seriousness as a contender. But Evan Mobley drew a different conclusion.
“From what I saw out there, we could beat anybody,” said Cleveland’s rising star.
Is that feeling different from last year, when Boston ousted Cleveland in a second-round playoff series?
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“Not really, honestly,” added Mobley (22 points, 11 rebounds). “Last year it felt the same way. We were right there. We lost the series, but most of the games we were right there with them the whole time.”
Can beat the Celtics and will beat the Celtics are two different things. For as much positivity as the Cavaliers drew from their first loss of the season, there is this: Boston will soon reincorporate All-Star center Kristaps Porzingis, who unlocks another dimension for a team that won a title largely without him.
The Celtics assigned Porzingis to their G League affiliate Monday. Instead of sending him to Maine, they brought the entire developmental team to Porzingis, so he could simulate serious game action for the first time since his surgery, sources told Yahoo Sports. Attendees were pleased with his performance, which is a) to be expected from anyone relaying 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 Dec. 1. That is the next measuring stick. This one fell short for the Cavs, who look different from last season yet still a tier below the fully healthy version of the reigning champs.
Boston Celtics (22-6, second in the Eastern Conference) vs. Orlando Magic (18-12, fourth in the Eastern Conference)
Orlando, Florida; Monday, 7 p.m. EST
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BOTTOM LINE: Boston visits the Orlando Magic after Jayson Tatum scored 43 points in the Celtics’ 123-98 victory over the Chicago Bulls.
The Magic are 14-7 against Eastern Conference opponents. Orlando is fifth in the Eastern Conference with 10.9 offensive rebounds per game led by Goga Bitadze averaging 2.9.
The Celtics are 20-4 against Eastern Conference opponents. Boston ranks sixth in the Eastern Conference with 10.8 offensive rebounds per game led by Luke Kornet averaging 2.0.
The Magic are shooting 45.2% from the field this season, 0.5 percentage points lower than the 45.7% the Celtics allow to opponents. The Celtics are shooting 45.7% from the field, 0.6% lower than the 46.3% the Magic’s opponents have shot this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Franz Wagner is averaging 24.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.7 steals for the Magic.
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Tatum is averaging 28.8 points, 9.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists for the Celtics.
LAST 10 GAMES: Magic: 5-5, averaging 106.4 points, 42.0 rebounds, 22.3 assists, 9.4 steals and 7.6 blocks per game while shooting 46.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 106.0 points per game.
Celtics: 7-3, averaging 118.5 points, 49.7 rebounds, 25.7 assists, 7.5 steals and 5.8 blocks per game while shooting 44.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 109.7 points.
INJURIES: Magic: Paolo Banchero: out (oblique), Franz Wagner: out (oblique), Jalen Suggs: day to day (ankle), Gary Harris: day to day (hamstring), Moritz Wagner: day to day (knee).
Celtics: Sam Hauser: day to day (back).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
A Boston Police officer who was fired for sending pro-Trump tweets anonymously on Jan. 6, 2021, had his termination vacated by the state civil service commission.
“We were getting decent looks, but we just weren’t making them,” Porzingis said. “And when you’re not making them, not that our energy was lacking, but it’s just not the same hype. And honestly, they were taking and making some tough shots, and they were also making the open ones.”
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The Celtics also saw their worst shooting percentage (39.2 percent) from the field in a game this season, connecting on 38-of-97 attempts.
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Meanwhile, Chicago is coming off one of their best defensive performances thus far. They had 56 rebounds and forward Zach LaVine led the offense with a season-high 36 points.
“They played physical,” Jaylen Brown said. “They hit shots. They guarded well. If a team’s hitting shots and guarding well, anything can happen on any given night.”
Sam Hauser is questionable to play with lower back spasms.
Here’s your preview.
When: Saturday, 8 p.m.
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Where: United Center, Chicago
TV, radio: NBCSB, WROR-FM (105.7)
Line: Boston -10.5. O/U: 240.5.
CELTICS
Season record: 21-6. vs. spread: 10-17. Over/under: 12-14, 1 push
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Last 10 games: 7-3. vs. spread: 3-7. Over/under: 4-6
BULLS
Season record: 13-15. vs. spread: 14-13, 1 push. Over/under: 16-12
Last 10 games: 6-4. vs. spread: 6-3, 1 push. Over/under: 5-5
TEAM STATISTICS
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Points per game: Boston 119.5, Chicago 118.8
Points allowed per game: Boston 110.0, Chicago 121.4
Field goal percentage: Boston .456, Chicago .473
Opponent field goal percentage: Boston .460, Chicago .477
3-point percentage: Boston .367, Chicago .378
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Opponent 3-point percentage: Boston .350, Chicago .339
Stat of the day: The victory ended the Bulls’ five-game losing streak against the Celtics, which included a 138-129 home loss on Nov. 29. It also gave the Bulls three straight victories for the first time this season.
Notes: LaVine scored five consecutive points after Boston made it a 99-96 game on a Brown 3-pointer. Two of those five points came on free throws after Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla and Brown were each hit with a technical foul with 5:12 to play — Mazzulla for walking onto the court and Brown for asking why his coach was given the tech. Tatum also received a technical with 3:10 remaining . . . The Bulls were 19 of 52 from 3-point range. They trailed 57-54 at halftime and 86-82 entering the fourth, but used a 12-0 run to take a 99-90 lead . . . Tatum had 31 points and 10 rebounds but was 10-of-22 shooting from the field.
Information from Field Level Media was used in this report.
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Alexa Podalsky can be reached at alexa.podalsky@globe.com.
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