The exact thing Kemba Walker wanted, literally nothing exciting Romeo Langford, & 10 things we learned from Boston Celtics vs. Charlotte Hornets

The exact thing Kemba Walker wanted, literally nothing exciting Romeo Langford, & 10 things we learned from Boston Celtics vs. Charlotte Hornets



Updated 11:55 AM;Today 5:00 AM




Boston Celtics' Kemba Walker ( reacts during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Charlotte Hornets in Boston, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)



By John Karalis | JKaralis@masslive.com




BOSTON - The Boston Celtics ultimately dispatched the Charlotte Hornets in a game where Jayson Tatum went berserk. He casually outscored the Hornets by six on his own in the fourth. His 22 points, 5 rebounds, and a steal would have been a great game for someone, nevermind a single quarter.

You’ll hear a lot about his points (even though his defense deserves a fair amount of conversation as well), but there’s more to this game than Tatum’s outburst.

Here are 10 things we learned from Celtics-Hornets


1. This is exactly what Kemba Walker was hoping for

Back in October, Kemba Walker said, “I’m loving it, not having not do so much all the time. Hopefully my usage rate might be going down a little bit. It allows other guys to make plays and I can appreciate that for sure.”

His usage rate (an estimation of the percentage of team plays a player uses while he’s on the floor) has, indeed, come down. It was 31.5 last year, and now it’s down to 28.1. It’s the third-highest of his career, but the three percent drop still feels good right now.

“I just had two points the other night and we won,” Walker said after a game that saw Tatum dominate the fourth quarter. “What can I complain about? As long as these guys are on top of the game and scoring and we’re winning, then I’m happy. No question.”

Frankly, Walker might be equating a lower usage rate with simply not having to carry the team every… single… night. He only took eight shots and scored eight points in the second half of what was a close game going into the fourth quarter. A year ago he’d have been the one trying to score 22 down the stretch to close things out.

Think of last year’s Hornet’s as Princess Vespa’s industrial strength hair dryer in Spaceballs, and Kemba is Lone Star (or Barf, I suppose. It’s up to you). Life got so much easier once that thing was left behind.


2. Romeo Langford gave us a glimpse of why he was picked 14th

He’s finally healthy (knock on wood, or whatever it is you do for good luck. I’m not superstitious, but I’m a little stitious) and able to get some decent run. He played 23 minutes and showed some serious glimpses into why he was a lottery pick.

“He was dealing with some injuries that kept him sidelined, but he's super talented,” Tatum said. “We've all seen him a lot in practice. With guys being out, his ability to step in. Last week, not knowing he was going to play at all and then now to playing big minutes in crucial times and hitting big shots. Just knowing where to be, especially on defense. That's where you gotta start here first, on defense. For him to know that is really promising for him.”

Brad Stevens also praised his defense, which was solid. He also made two of his three 3-pointers, which was always a question coming into this season. He’s struggled a little with the shot with the Red Claws, but that didn’t matter in this game.

“I’m a lot more comfortable now that I’ve been getting more than one game under my belt,” he said. “You never know when your name’s going to be called. And my name was called, and I feel like working with (Celtics assistant) Coach Joe (Mazzulla) and all the work I’ve been doing has helped me prepare myself to be ready.”


3. Jayson Tatum is finishing at the rim (and it’s helping him take over games)

Earlier this season, Tatum was shooting 38.7 percent on shots within five feet of the rim and 33.3 percent on layups. Now he’s up to 50.7 percent within five feet and 43.8 percent on layups. That’s because since I wrote about those horrible numbers on November 16, Tatum has shot 64.5 percent within five feet and 57.6 percent on layups.

“Just trying to be more patient, play off two feet, just finish,” Tatum said. “I missed a lot of bunnies early in the season I shouldn't have missed… Each game is different. I just try not to think too much. Just take what the defense gives me and be patient and make the right reads.”

Earlier in the year, Tatum was attacking with reckless abandon. Now he’s being a little more judicious with his attacks, which is helping keep defenders off guard.

“I thought he did a good job of picking his spots,” Stevens said. “I thought he chose when to shoot it right and then attacked at other times, and obviously he’s got the little side-step and different moves to get the 3 off. He’s done a good job, and I was really happy with our team for finding him. As he got hot, they were locked into him and I think that’s a good thing.”

That’s not exactly been a strong suit for Stevens’ Celtics over the years. There has certainly been some hand-wringing by mad-online folks who want hot hands fed. Tatum’s ability to vary his attack against Charlotte helped make sure his teammates were rewarded for finding him.


4. Grant Williams is a deadeye 3-point shooter now

The 0-for-25 streak is now history. Since then, Williams has gone 5-for-9 from deep. The one he it tonight wasn’t exactly a clean, in rhythm look.


Grant Williams hits a 3

Brad Stevens likes to talk about the lid coming off the basket. It certainly has for Williams.


5. But he’s still really good at the little things

Williams is a pick-setting, ball-moving, defense-playing glue guy. This play defines why he gets to be on the floor so much.


Max Carlin
@maxacarlin
Enormous screen and seal from Grant to enable Jaylen's drive

https://twitter.com/maxacarlin/status/1208901935463575552
56
9:07 PM - Dec 22, 2019


It’s a very solid pick, and the seal helps spring Jaylen Brown (who had great recognition and a smooth crossover to take advantage of the opening) for an open layup.


6. Kemba Walker is excited to play on Christmas

“It means a lot man. For me, personally, I never got a chance to play on Christmas or even have this kind of notoriety. So I’m really excited for it. As a kid, these are the kinds of games you grow up watching. For me to be a part of it is definitely going to be a special moment.”


7. Literally nothing excites Langford, though

If you haven’t heard by now, Langford is a bit… quirky. He certainly fits Brad Stevens’ “not too high, not too low” mantra. In fact, it fits almost too perfectly.

After having a strong game, which included his first career 3-pointers and some good praise from his coach, Langford was asked what truly excites him in life.

“I mean, I don’t know. I don’t really get too much excited that often,” he said “I try to act like I’ve been there. That’s one thing – like my dad, growing up when I was playing football, he didn’t want me celebrating after I scored a touchdown because he said to act like you’ve been there before. So I just carry that with me through all aspects of life.”


8. Celtics fans have love for Terry Rozier

It was nice of the Celtics to introduce him last.


Chris Forsberg

@ChrisForsberg_
Cheers for Terry Rozier back in Boston.

https://twitter.com/ChrisForsberg_/status/1208886912142004229
436
8:07 PM - Dec 22, 2019


Frankly, I think Rozier gets let off hook a little too easily for what happened last year. Most people want to blame it all on Kyrie Irving, but it was Rozier who consistently talked about how hard it was for him to come off the bench, and it was Rozier who went on ESPN and roasted the Celtics at every turn.

Rozier was part of the problem last year, and his departure is part of the solution.


9. Vincent Poirier’s wardrobe turns heads


Nicole Yang

@nicolecyang
Vincent Poirier rocking a suit he got in Spain today. He said he plans on wearing the glasses during the game, too.


279
7:00 PM - Dec 22, 2019

Jayson Tatum saw the outfit, stopped dead in his tracks, and said “damn.” Robert Williams also stopped and said things, but those aren’t fit to print here.

Let’s be honest here. There aren’t many people who can pull that suit off, and everyone who can is French.


10. The Celtics are terrible singers (except for Grant Williams, but he’s more of a chorus singer)

They tried to get the Celtics to sing “Frosty the Snowman.” It was awesome and terrible… awesomely terrible.


Enes Kanter

@EnesKanter
Frosty The Snowman ‍�

https://twitter.com/EnesKanter/status/1209132735278784515
666
12:24 PM - Dec 23, 2019


Grant Williams has potential. I’d pick Kemba Walker for a lot of things, but karaoke wouldn’t be one of them.



bob
MY NOTE:  For what it's worth my dad used to say the same thing to me Romeo said his dad used to tell him.  "Act like you've been there before".

And that pick-and-seal he shows of GWill's is more like pulling right guard going through the 3-hole and sealing the middle linebacker inside than a basketball play.



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more like pulling right guard going through the 3-hole and sealing the middle linebacker inside than a basketball play.

Exactamundo!

worcester wrote:more like pulling right guard going through the 3-hole and sealing the middle linebacker inside than a basketball play.

Exactamundo!

worcester,

Speaking of "Exactamundo", I just arrived in Iguazu today. I go to see the falls tomorrow morning. Thanks for the heads up.


bob


.

Iguazu has three amazing things going for it besides being the most fabulous waterfalls on planet earth.
1. They are set in the Amazon jungle where the oxygen level is much higher than in most other environments, leading to a natural high (even higher than our seats for the Celtics Warriors game in SF).
2. The falls create oodles of negative ions, another great natural high.
3. The tropical sun streams through the ever present mist from the waterfalls, creating rainbows almost everywhere.

Enjoy!!!