BOSTON — Jae Crowder issued a challenge to his Celtics teammates Wednesday night.
“We’ve got to get back to our defense,” the C’s swingman said after the Toronto Raptors dropped 115 points on Boston.
Apparently that message came through loud and clear.
The Celtics’ defense was ferocious Friday night at TD Garden, racking up 14 steals and forcing 20 Chicago Bulls turnovers en route to a 110-101 win. As expected, Crowder helped set the tone, tallying three of those thefts and dealing with star guard Jimmy Butler despite battling what apparently was a pretty nasty illness.
“I think it was a lot of grit on his part,” head coach Brad Stevens said of Crowder. “He didn’t even go through walkthrough. He just sat there in his sweats. I mean, he was pretty sick (Friday). But he was able to gut it out, and I thought he did a good job on Butler.”
Crowder had plenty of help from his teammates. Defensive stalwart Avery Bradley had a game-high four steals, while Jared Sullinger recorded three thefts to help fill the hole left by Amir Johnson, who missed Friday’s game for personal reasons. Isaiah Thomas even got in on the fun with a steal in the second quarter as part of a 14-2 Boston run.
“We were guarding. That was pretty clear,” Stevens said of his team’s defensive effort. “Usually when you guard, you’re locked in, you’re engaged, and then good things can happen offensively. But we were pretty focused on defending at a better level than we’ve defended over the past week to 10 days.”
That’s a pretty good strategy, as the Celtics entered Friday having allowed 115 or more points in each of their last three games.
Boston’s defense wasn’t perfect. Butler and Derrick Rose combined for 55 points, and Chicago roared back with a 33-point outburst in the third quarter. But the C’s are at their best when their swarming pressure creates offense on the other end, and that’s exactly what they did Friday, racking up 26 points off Chicago’s 20 turnovers.
“Steals are a byproduct of it,” Stevens said when asked about the team’s defensive identity. “Because you’re in the right position, you’re in a stance, you’re talking, you’re together, you’re locked in, you’re doing all the hard things, and then you can adjust on the fly.
“I just didn’t feel like — and I think our guys would echo this — I didn’t feel like in any of the three games on the road, we were as good as we’ve been. Doesn’t mean that you want to take away from those other teams. They certainly made shots and made plays. … But we were clearly better from the tip (Friday).”
Thumbnail photo via Mark L. Baer/USA TODAY Sports Images
