The Boston Celtics have been riding high this season, but even elite teams hit turbulence-and lately, that turbulence has been arriving in the form of defensive pressure from opponents. Monday night’s 102-94 win over the Portland Trail Blazers was another reminder that while the Celtics can light it up offensively, it’s their defense that often has to carry them when the rhythm starts to fade.
Boston came out of the gate strong, but as the game wore on, the offense sputtered. What kept them from letting this one slip away?
Defense. Grit.
The kind of effort that doesn’t always show up on the stat sheet but absolutely shows up in the win column.
Head coach Joe Mazzulla broke it down postgame, and his comments offered a window into how the Celtics are navigating these pressure-packed matchups.
“In the first half, they only had three offensive rebounds, and they didn’t get to the free throw line,” Mazzulla said. “So we didn’t have to play against [their set defense] as much, because we were able to get stops.”
That early defensive control allowed Boston to get out and run-something this team thrives on. When the Celtics can play in transition, they’re dangerous.
The ball moves, the shooters get space, and the offense flows. But in the second half, things changed.
“We put them at the free throw line, and they had seven offensive rebounds,” Mazzulla noted. “So the game just kind of slowed down.”
That’s where the Celtics had to grind. Portland dictated the tempo for much of the second half, turning the game into a half-court battle. And while that’s not always Boston’s preferred style, they showed they can win that way too.
“It was kind of at their pace for the majority of the second half,” Mazzulla admitted. “But I thought our defense kept us in, and we were still able to defend even though we were fouling-we still competed.”
That’s the key word: competed. Even when the offense wasn’t clicking, even when the game got “mucked up,” as Mazzulla put it, the Celtics dug in and found a way.
“So we are pretty good at that,” he added, referring to Boston’s ability to execute in the half court when needed.
And he’s right. This team has the personnel and the discipline to adapt.
Whether it’s Jayson Tatum creating off the dribble, Jaylen Brown attacking mismatches, or Derrick White and Jrue Holiday locking in on the perimeter, the Celtics have layers to their game. When one part isn’t working, they’ve got others to lean on.
Monday’s win wasn’t a highlight-reel blowout. It was a grind-it-out, defense-first kind of night.
And for a team with championship aspirations, those are the kinds of games that matter most. Because when the playoffs come around, the pace slows, the pressure rises, and every possession counts.
Boston showed they can win that kind of game. That’s a statement in itself.