5 Observations from Celtics win vs. Cavs

The Boston Celtics are on a four-game winning streak

As we approach the Feb. 6 trade deadline and the All-Star break, the Boston Celtics have begun to find themselves again. Isolation-heavy basketball has made way for selfless ball movement, cutting and screening. They’re playing economic basketball: every movement has a purpose.

The Cleveland Cavaliers may be leading the Eastern Conference, but the Celtics now hold a 2-1 record against Kenny Atkinson’s team for the season. Sure, there are still areas where watering is waiting to find its level — just take Jrue Holiday’s continued struggles on offense as an example.

Yet, for the most part, the tides are coming in, and with them, a dominant basketball team is awakening from its slumber. If you had any doubts about Joe Mazzulla’s team getting its swagger back, then let last night be a demonstrative lesson.

Now that I’ve gotten the plaudits out of the way, let’s dive into 5 observations from last night’s game.

#1: Luke Kornet is a gem

“His physical has been top-notch,” Mazzulla said. “His ability to protect the rim on defense — he had some great possessions on Mobley. Offensively, he does a great job against different coverages. Screening, getting guys open and his offensive rebounding, I think he’s been elite for us lately. He’s gotta continue to be that way.”

As a non-shooting big playing in what is primarily a five-out offense, Kornet has carved out an important role for himself. The ball never sticks in his hands. He’s always moving — either to set a screen, space in the weakside slot or position himself in the dunker spot. And, most importantly, he rarely makes the wrong read.

Over the past 12-18 months, Kornet’s ability in the short roll has become his most reliable weapon on the offensive side of the floor. He showcased the diversity in that skill set against the Cavaliers.

Possessions like the one above have become ubiquitous with Kornet. High screen, short-roll, re-direct the rock as the defense shades over. In this instance, it was Sam Merrill who helped off Sam Hauser to take away Kornet’s path to the basket, leaving one of the best catch-and-shoot threats in the NBA wide open from deep.

I don’t know about you, but I trust Kornet to make that read 10 out of 10 times. The pass might not always be perfect—sometimes, a defender gets a deflection—but it will be made. Kornet is reliable in that sense.

Of course, if the defense doesn’t shade over, then Kornet is a viable roll man. His size and soft touch around the rim ensure that he’s a valuable threat within 4 feet of the basket, where he’s shooting 74% this season.

A quick flare screen from Kornet leads the Celtics into a zoom action, which is a pin-down into a dribble hand-off. As soon as the ball leaves Kornet’s hands, he’s rolling to the rim, slipping his defender while the Cavaliers look to put two on the ball. Once Kornet catches the rock inside of the restricted area he’s difficult to stop, as illustrated above with an easy dunk.

I’ve written about Kornet’s value to the Celtics offense on numerous occasions, but after a performance like this, his short-roll and pick-and-roll offense deserved some additional love.

Another aspect of Kornet’s performance that was impressive, was how he contained shooters and impacted shots. He finished the game with the lowest Defensive Field Goal Percentage of any player on the floor, holding his opponents to 3-of-14 shooting, including 0-of-6 from deep — which is a 21.4% DFG%.

Kornet’s contributions are often overlooked. He doesn’t fill up the stat sheet. Rarely makes a highlight play. And often eats less than 15 minutes of playing time. However, his defensive impact was on full display against the Cavaliers, as was his ability to keep the offense moving rather than stagnating. For a veteran big man earning just $2.8 million, his value to Mazzulla’s team can’t be ignored — especially after a performance like last night against one of the best teams in the NBA.