BOSTON – Al Horford drilled a game-sealing bucket from the corner. The Celtics escaped a fourth-quarter Bulls comeback loaded with difficult shots. Coach Joe Mazzulla thought Boston played one of its better games of the season because of the “mindset” and “toughness” the team showed.
The Celtics didn’t need a hot night from the outside to hold off the Bulls, 107-99, partly because Mazzulla started Robert Williams for the first time all season. With Marcus Smart out due to a left knee contusion, Mazzulla went back to the big frontcourt that helped give the Celtics a dominant defense last season.
“It felt like we were back to normal,” said Jayson Tatum.
Tatum quickly corrected himself, pointing out Smart’s absence. The Celtics didn’t quite reunite their old first unit. Still, for the first time since Williams returned from a season-opening 29-game absence, the Celtics called on him in the starting frontcourt. They went big, unleashing the Williams-Horford duo that stomped out opposing offenses last season. Although Williams’ stat line of six points, seven rebounds, two blocks and two assists was relatively mild, his teammates and coaches pointed to everything his presence afforded them.
“He was great,” said Mazzulla. “I think he brought a level of joy to our team, just because of how unselfish he is and the type of plays he’s able to make on both ends of the floor. I thought our spacing was better with our big lineup. That’s just something we’re going to continue to work on.”
The Celtics still need to find their offensive rhythm with those big frontcourts, but the defensive formula still works. With Horford next to him, Williams can roam off the opponent’s least threatening perimeter player. With both of the big men on the court, the Celtics’ defense has been almost impenetrable dating back to the beginning of last season.
For various reasons, including limited playing time for Williams since his return, Boston only used the duo for 38 combined minutes over Williams’ first nine games this season. After one of those games, assistant coach Damon Stoudamire said to expect more time for those types of lineups soon. Sure enough, Horford and Williams played 11 minutes together on Thursday while sparking a rugged effort. The Celtics opened up a 14-7 lead before the first substitution of the game mostly by collecting regular stops. Over the course of the game, the Bulls scored just 18 points while Williams and Horford shared the court. The Celtics held Chicago to 8-for-22 shooting (36.4 percent) during those minutes while allowing just one offensive rebound.
Williams turns mistakes into highlights. He covers ground like a free safety. When the Celtics had a defensive breakdown on an inbound play early in the first quarter, it just didn’t matter. Williams waited for the right moment to contest Ayo Dosunmu’s layup and mashed the shot off the backboard.
The Celtics can win without Williams. They proved it while jumping to the top of the NBA standings during his absence. They can thrive with him coming off the bench. His net rating entering Monday night’s game (plus 10.8) is evidence of that. Still, if they are to reach peak form, Williams’ teammates believe they will need more from him than he has been allowed to give so far.
“I know we got off to a hot start with other guys playing a different type of ball, but I think down the line and in the playoffs, having Rob has a critical part of our offense and defense is going to be, I think, necessary,” said Jaylen Brown. “So I think that’s something we should take a look at as we get closer to the playoffs.”
The Celtics players sound eager for the day when Williams is free to handle a full load of minutes. That day hasn’t arrived yet. Although the team’s public messaging about it has not always been consistent, Williams is indeed on a minutes restriction. That’s why he didn’t play more than 22 minutes in any of his first nine games. It’s a significant reason why he didn’t start before Monday. The Celtics want to handle his return from injury with an abundance of caution, knowing they will need him most once the playoffs arrive. That objective contributed to the length of time the team held out Williams at the beginning of the season.
He was able to have a major impact on the team’s finals run last season even while hobbling around during many of the games. How much will he help if he’s able to maintain full health throughout the playoffs?
“We need Rob,” said Brown. “Rob is amazing. Rob has a special ability on offense and defense, as we’ve been able to see for a little bit this year but especially last year. The more we integrate him and use him, I think the better our team will be.”
While starting Williams and using him for a season-high 23 minutes, the Celtics broke out a different style – their old style – against Chicago. Tatum has played 42 percent of his minutes at power forward this season, according to Cleaning the Glass, but did not spend any time in that position against the Bulls. According to an examination of NBA.com’s lineup data, the Celtics played all 48 minutes with either Horford or Grant Williams at power forward. They chose you. They chose physicality. They chose to return to the recipe that transformed them into contenders last season.
It’s likely no coincidence that the Celtics allowed fewer than 100 points for just the sixth time this season. Their defensive efficiency of 104.2 points per 100 possessions ranked as their 10th-best of the campaign. The Bulls only attempted 12 shots at the rim, proof that the Celtics weren’t allowing many easy baskets.
“He just does so much for our defense,” said Horford, “and just takes us to another level.”
The Celtics won’t always play bigger lineups. They acquired Malcolm Brogdon over the offseason partly so they can do more shape shifting when necessary. They have more offensive pop now. Still, they appreciated being able to show off their old style again. Robert Williams won’t necessarily stay in the first unit once Smart returns, but Mazzulla liked how Boston looked against Chicago.
The Celtics shot just 11 for 41 on 3-point attempts, yet held off the Bulls even after some impressive fourth-quarter shot making from Zach LaVine. After Chicago pulled within two points late in that period, Tatum beat a Bulls double team by finding Horford open in the corner. The big man drilled a clutch 3-pointer with 25.5 seconds left to give the Celtics a five-point lead. Moments later, Tatum finished off the win by slamming home an and-1 dunk in transition.
“Regardless of the result, on either end of the floor, we kept a certain body language and certain focus about us,” said Mazzulla. “A togetherness, a commitment to the details, and it was really fun to watch the guys do that.”
(Photo of Celtics center Robert Williams blocking a shot on Monday: David Butler II / USA Today)
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