The Celtics could run a few more Derrick White-Kristaps Porzingis pick-and-rolls. They shoot too many three-pointers. They don’t take enough three-pointers.
After a two-game losing streak, the knee jerk reaction would be to criticize the offense. Losing is a deficit of points in the end. Shot-making can be a fickle thing however and Joe Mazzulla has been quick to defend his team on most nights when not enough of them go down.
But quietly over the last few months, the Celtics have started tightening the screws on the other side of the ball. Consider even how Boston closed out the road trip winning the final three games in Phoenix, Portland, and Salt Lake City.