CelticsBlog · Apr 8, 2023
Peak Celtics: with the playoffs starting next week, Boston is hitting its stride
Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty ImagesWith the #2 seed all locked up, the Celtics didn’t have much to play for Friday night. They were hosting the Raptors for a second straight game without Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart, and Malcolm Brogdon. The remainder of the regular season was all but a formality. Nothing was on the line. Jayson Tatum played only in the first half. And the Celtics won in blowout fashion anyway.
“We had no reason to be competitive and play the way we did other than it was the right thing to do,” head coach Joe Mazzulla said after a 121-102 blowout of Toronto where his team was leading by as many as 36 points in the first half.