On Thursday, October 19, 2023, in Charlotte, North Carolina, during the first half of an NBA basketball preseason game, Charlotte Hornets guard Nick Smith Jr. (8) defends against Charlotte Hornets centre Mark Williams (5). (Photo by Erik Verduzco for AP)
The Celtics’ next game on the court will be the first of the season. But first, the C’s defeated the Hornets 127-99 on Thursday in Charlotte to complete their preseason tune-up. Throughout the first quarter, the Celtics accumulated a double-digit advantage and did not let it drop.
Al Horford was the only regular for the Celtics to sit on Thursday because he needed to recover. Aside from that, the Celtics played their final five games of the preseason at full strength. Boston had a 4-1 preseason record, winning each time the regulars on the field.
With 20 points on 8 of 12 shots, Jaylen Brown led the way among the five starters who finished in double figures. Jayson Tatum stuffed the stat sheet with an impressive 11 points, seven assists, and six rebounds. With 14 points and 12 rebounds, Kristaps Porzingis recorded a double-double.
Jaylen Brown led the way with 20 points on 8 of 12 shooting, while all five of the starters finished in double figures. With 11 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds, Jayson Tatum packed the stat sheet. Kristaps Porzingis scored 14 points and pulled down 12 rebounds for a double-double.
Note on starting lineup: With Horford sidelined, the C’s started Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, Tatum, Brown, and Porzingis in the same order as they did in the previous game. That shouldn’t be shocking. Joe Mazzulla, the coach of the C’s, stated prior to the game that he isn’t a big admirer of the attention that comes with the starting lineup. Naturally, observers and fans will be curious about which player in the Celtics’ starting lineup will most likely come off the bench. However, Mazzulla emphasised that the C’s will be all about sacrifice, so the starters shouldn’t receive too much attention.
Focus on the backup big: Luke Kornet hasn’t shown much throughout the preseason, despite the fact that many anticipated him to be the third big man behind Horford and Porzingis. Thus, Mazzulla made an intriguing choice by starting Neemias Queta as the first big off the bench on Thursday. Throughout the preseason, the two-way signee has shown promise as he has played with the starting lineup. Mazzulla has since issued a warning about extrapolating from the preseason minutes. However, that’s something to keep in mind moving forward, particularly during the season. In his 13 minutes on Thursday, Queta finished with 12 points and seven rebounds, five of which were offensive.
Focus on the backup big: Luke Kornet hasn’t shown much throughout the preseason, despite the fact that many anticipated him to be the third big man behind Horford and Porzingis. Thus, Mazzulla made an intriguing choice by starting Neemias Queta as the first big off the bench on Thursday. Throughout the preseason, the two-way signee has shown promise as he has played with the starting lineup. Mazzulla has since issued a warning about extrapolating from the preseason minutes. However, that’s something to keep in mind moving forward, particularly during the season. In his 13 minutes on Thursday, Queta finished with 12 points and seven rebounds, five of which were offensive.Focus on the backup big: Luke Kornet hasn’t shown much throughout the preseason, despite the fact that many anticipated him to be the third big man behind Horford and Porzingis. Thus, Mazzulla made an intriguing choice by starting Neemias Queta as the first big off the bench on Thursday. Throughout the preseason, the two-way signee has shown promise as he has played with the starting lineup. Mazzulla has since issued a warning about extrapolating from the preseason minutes. However, that’s something to keep in mind moving forward, particularly during the season. In his 13 minutes on Thursday, Queta finished with 12 points and seven rebounds, five of which were offensive.
Final stretch: The Celtics still have a few preseason practises left, which is a plus even though they no longer have any preseason games. This enables them to complete a little bit extra work before the season opening on Wednesday of next week. The C’s have had difficult behind-the-scenes practises, and they will now have a few more days of that. They will have fewer practise days as the regular season progresses. Thus, even in the absence of any games, the final few days of preseason remain significant.
