The Boston Celtics have one of the most dynamics scorers in the NBA, but the C’s haven’t put all of their eggs in their superstar player’s basket.
After Gordon Hayward went down with a season-ending injury, many expected the Celtics to heavily rely on Kyrie Irving to pace the team’s offense. While the star point guard has risen to the occasion, he certainly isn’t the only Boston player who has elevated their game early in the season.
The Celtics’ offense has been exceptionally well-rounded of late, including in their 104-88 win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday. While Irving had a rather underwhelming night with 11 points, the rest of Boston’s starting five helped pick up the slack. Jaylen Brown posted a game-high 18 points, while Al Horford and Jayson Tatum weren’t too far behind with 14 and 13, respectively.
Marcus Morris also turned in a strong effort in his first start of the season with 12 points, while Marcus Smart provided a lift off the bench with 11. In total, the Celtics logged 26 assists in their eighth consecutive win, compared to Orlando’s 18.
It’s clear the Celtics have put egos aside, which has vaulted them to the NBA’s best record early in the 2017-18 campaign. After the win against the Magic, Smart explained what has made the team’s offense so fluid of late.
“We’re just moving the ball,” Smart said, as seen on NBC Sports Boston’s Celtics postgame coverage. “Everybody touched it. We were making the right plays and that’s what we have to do, especially against a team that’s been playing really good defensively.”
Brad Stevens echoed Smart’s sentiments, but the Celtics coach knows there still is room for improvement on the offensive end.
“The one thing we’re trying to do, and you can see that lately, is share the ball,” Stevens said. “That was really good. Hopefully, we can keep doing that. Hopefully, we can keep playing together and make some shots and we’ll execute a little better when we need to.”
Boston has yet to have a player eclipse the 30-point threshold through 10 games this season, but as evidenced by the team’s current winning streak, a prolific scoring night hasn’t been needed.
Here are some other notes from Celtics-Magic:
— The C’s have limited their opponent to 94 points or less in their last eight games.
— Boston became the first team in NBA history to win eight straight games after losing its first two of the season.
— Horford was a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc, boosting his 3-point percentage this season to 46.7. He has made his last seven attempts from beyond the arc.
— Smart led the Celtics with a plus-32 rating, while Terry Rozier was second at plus-22.
— Irving added another steal and currently leads the NBA with an average of 2.4 thefts per game.
Thumbnail photo via Mark D. Smith/USA TODAY Sports Images
