The Boston Celtics don’t seem to have been terribly affected by a lack of available big men in Friday’s 116 – 107 win over the Washington Wizards, with a number of players out in the league’s health and safety protocol after big man Robert Williams III tested positive for COVID-19.
The Celtics jumped out to a comfortable early lead with only centers Daniel Theis and Tacko Fall able to play, ahead of the Wiz by as much as 19 in the first half, and 26 points in the third quarter. But a little bit of late sleepwalking combined with Washington getting hot from beyond the arc made for a tight game late.
VIDEO: Celtics center Tacko Fall rejects Wizard’s Russell Westbrook https://t.co/BXLAGXUgvo
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) January 9, 2021
Big games from the binary star assassins of Jayson Tatum (32 points, 5 rebounds) and Jaylen Brown (27 points, 13 boards, 5 assists) while the former went basket-for-basket with friend Bradley Beal, as well as Marcus Smart adding 13 points and 5 assists.
The bench had some shining moments as well, with two way center Tacko Fall showing he is a legitimate NBA center with 4 points, 8 rebounds and 3 blocks in 19 minutes of floor time, along with rookie Payton Pritchard with 11 points on 3-4 shooting from the floor, all three makes treys.
It was a surprisingly satisfying win given once again it would have been understandable for a team reeling from injury to mail in a game, and bodes very well for the looming return of All-Star point guard Kemba Walker.
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