Celtics Notes: Jaylen Brown Knows Win Vs. Nuggets Was Much Needed
Plus: Boston's bench was crucial in the victory
The Boston Celtics are hopeful their win over the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday at TD Garden marks the end of a brutal month-long stretch.
Boston snapped a two-game losing skid with a 112-99 victory. And while a mere two-game skid isn’t anything to harp on, considering Tuesday was just their second win in six games, after losing 10 of their last 15, it was much needed.
“Yeah, absolutely,” Brown told reporters when asked if Tuesday’s game was more important considering the circumstances. “We just lost two bad ones. I think it was obvious that we needed a win tonight. We needed to come out with good energy, and I think for the most part we did. So, I’m grateful that we got the win.
“We need wins like that, wins against some good opponents that fire us up and things like that,” Brown added. “Because that can carry over to next games and stuff like that. Today was a good win, let’s see if we can build off it.”
Teammate Robert Williams explained how he thought the Celtics came in with a different attitude, as the big man put it, a “positive vibes” type of mindset.
“I feel like the bench brought great energy, but I feel like it was really just all around — really just positive vibes,” Williams told reporters. “(It’s) something we’ve been talking about.
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“I just feel like we’re just getting sick of it,” Williams added. “Obviously, we’ve been in a place the last couple days where we don’t want to be at anymore. And it’s really on us to change it. I feel like everybody brought a new attitude tonight.”
Here are some other takeaways from Celtics-Nuggets:
— Williams and the bench were a crucial aspect of the win, too.
The Celtics’ bench outscored the Nuggets 30-17. The unit, led by Aaron Nesmith (nine points on 2-for-4 from 3-point range), Williams (eight points, eight rebounds, five steals) and Payton Pritchard (eight points, seven assists) scored 23 first-half points to help put the Celtics in position.
Brown is hoping they will have a consistent presence moving forward.
“Those guys are looking to make names for themselves and be in this league for a long time,” Brown said of the bench. “So, the goal is just to continue to be consistent. You got to do it every single night, you got prepare every single night sometimes on the road is tough and that’s what we’re trying to find as a team, just trying to find some kind of consistency. But I think those guys really stepped up big tonight.”
For what it’s worth, Nesmith (+20), Pritchard (+19) and Williams (+12) had the best plus-minuses on the team.
— Nikola Jokic was absolutely incredible for the Nuggets.
The unicorn of a big man scored a game-high 43 points on 16-for-23 from the field. He added six rebounds and five assists while making difficult shot after difficult shot over Celtics defenders like Tristan Thompson and Williams.
“I thought both those guys gave everything they had on Jokic,” head coach Brad Stevens told reporters of Thompson and Williams. “Jokic is a load. Obviously, with all the fakes, his ability to draw fouls, his able to score the ball and obviously his incredible passing ability. He is a tough, tough cover.”
Thompson finished with nine points and 12 rebounds, filling in for the injured Daniel Theis.
— Brown scored a team-high 27 points for the Celtics on 11-for-20 from the field. He shot 50 percent from long range, including two in the second half which helped the Celtics pull away.
— The 14-13 Celtics will return to TD Garden for a back-to-back on Wednesday as they host the Atlanta Hawks.
