The Boston Celtics fell 108-102 against the Detroit Pistons for the second time this season on Friday night.
Detroit was led by rookie Saddiq Bey (30 points, 7-for-7 from 3-point range) and Delon Wright (22 points, 7-for-9 shooting). The C’s got 33 and 27 points from Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown respectively in the losing attempt.
Celtics-Pistons highlights: C’s can’t stop Bey in 108-102 loss
This is what we overreact to when Boston moves to 13-12 in the season.
1. The C’s missed Saddiq Bey.
Boston had the chance to draft Bey with the 14th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. It went instead with Aaron Nesmith in that spot, and Bey finished with the Pistons at No. 19 overall.
(Our own Chris Forsberg sent Bey to Boston in his latest NBA Mock Draft).
That has come back to bite the Celtics this season in their three encounters with Bey and the Pistons. The Villanova product was 7-for-11 (23 points) in two games against Boston prior to Friday night’s game. Then he exploded for a ridiculous 30 points, throwing a perfect 7-for-7 from outside the arc.
How’s that as a reminder of what you could have had?
In all fairness, Bey hasn’t always been a steady contributor throughout his beginner campaign. But he has certainly been much more useful than Nesmith. The rookie of the C hasn’t seen the track at all, shooting just 32.4 percent of the field (31 percent of 3) in limited action this season.
There’s plenty of time for Nesmith to find his rhythm, but it’s hard to watch Friday’s game and not wonder if the Celtics made the wrong decision.
Verdict: Overreaction
2. The Celtics really miss Marcus Smart.
Since Smart sustained his calf injury on Jan. 30 vs. the Los Angeles Lakers, the C’s are 3-4 and cycle through starting lineups that for the most part don’t get the job done.
This time it was rookie Payton Pritchard who started on Smart. As incredible as “Fast PP” has been this season, he was a non-factor Friday night with two points (1-for-5 shots) in 29 minutes on Friday night.
Obviously, Pritchard isn’t the problem, but it’s another example of the Celtics’ lack of depth at point guard. It also goes beyond the box score as Smart’s leading presence is clearly missed.
Either Boston needs to think long and hard about that traded player exception, or Smart needs to come back to provide relief ASAP. Or both.
Verdict: No overreaction
3. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown need to involve others more.
The Celtics reaped the benefits of sharing the rock Thursday night versus the Toronto Raptors, with 30 assists in total, while Tatum and Brown did a phenomenal job of involving teammates. Tatum scored nine assists, and Brown had a career-high of 10. As a result, Semi Ojeleye and Payton Pritchard took 44 points and were the key to victory.
Friday night was a different story as the C’s had only 15 assists in total vs. Detroit. Tatum did his part with seven, but the ball just didn’t move.
The thing is, the Celtics only go as far as their supporting cast can take them. Tatum and Brown are budding superstars, but they can’t do it alone. This was evident from Friday’s defeat, which lasted the entire season.
Verdict: No overreaction
The next game for the C’s is a Sunday matchup against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena. Tip-off is set at 1:00 p.m. ET.