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Tim BontempsESPN
BOSTON – The Celtics – who were already trapped in a three-game series loss and had lost eight of their past 11 games – were five minutes behind in Friday night’s game against the Indiana Pacers. It was the kind of performance that, had fans been allowed into TD Garden, would have gotten a solid round of boos.
But instead of putting himself and his team down at another ugly loss in a slew of them, Kemba Walker put the Celtics on his back. And one night when the team’s young All-Stars, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, were ineffective, it was Walker who scored 32 points and provided six assists to take Boston to a much-needed 118-112 victory over the Pacers.
“I don’t think we’ll win the game without his will,” said Celtics coach Brad Stevens. “I guess no matter how everyone plays, when that thing was 18-4, he was the loudest voice. He forced us back into that thing. And now we’re on our feet again, [and] we have a little bit of confidence, that was shot this week.
“But that’s what really good players do. That’s what veterans do. That’s what guys who have been there, have done that and have been doing that for a long time. So I really thought he was leading us tonight.”
It has been as difficult for Walker individually as it has been for the Celtics as a team. After a 12-week off-season reinforcement program for his troublesome left knee that caused him to miss the first few weeks of this season, Walker went 37.5% off the field on Friday night – the second-worst percentage of his career.
But on this night, Walker looked in every way like the All-Star he was last season before the knee problems started. After Boston fell into that 18-4 hole, Walker scored or assisted on 13 of the team’s 15 points in a 15-2 run that helped the Celtics take a lead after the first quarter.
“I try to bring that aspect into play every night, my leadership,” said Walker. “I try to use my voice as much as possible to keep my teammates going when things aren’t going well.
“I know guys look at me in situations like that, and you know, just try to stay optimistic, just try to stay positive and just bring that energy to the team.”
Since Tatum (4-for-18 shooting, nine points) and Brown (5-for-12, 15 points) were unable to get it going, it was a combination of the two things that got the most attention in Boston’s struggles – Walker and the supporting cast – allowed the Celtics to achieve this victory.
Jeff Teague, the veteran point guard who has struggled tremendously all season and recently gotten several DNPs, had his best game since scoring 19 points in the season opener, scoring 14 in 19 minutes. Rookie Payton Pritchard, who has had his own problems lately, had nine points in 19 minutes, while young big man Robert Williams III had 14 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists in 22 minutes.
“It’s been a different experience than I’ve ever had, but it’s always been a learning experience,” said Teague. “Just take the good with the bad and keep rolling. Tonight was a big win for our team; we played well. I’m happy to see a lot of guys playing well. We finally helped JT, Kemba and Jaylen tonight. So it was good for us. “
Above all, it was important for the Celtics to win after an ugly past few days in which they lost in extra time in New Orleans on Sunday after blowing a 24-point lead, a last-second 3-pointer from Luka. Doncic on Tuesday in Dallas, then destroyed Wednesday in Atlanta without Walker (knee management).
After Friday’s win, everyone said how important it was to get that collective bad taste out of their mouths with a win, and Walker specifically said it was up to the team leaders to make sure the Celtics stick together in their fight.
“We’ll work it out,” Walker said. ‘That’s up to me. That’s on Jaylen. That’s on Jayson. That’s on Marcus [Smart]And then Tristan [Thompson] and Jeff are going to add something to that too. That’s on the veterans, just like Brad. We have to keep it together. We can’t let anyone go in any other direction. Even though things may not be going as well as we’d like right now, things can change very quickly so the only way to get out of the fray is to do it together. “