Fleeting thoughts from Celtics win vs. Raptors

It wasn't pretty, but winning is winning

Sundays are arguably my busiest day of the week. I visit family, go grocery shopping, help my daughter with her homework and try to fit in a quick trip to the gym.

Here are some of my fleeting thoughts from last night’s game.

Game notes

• Jayson Tatum continues to cook in the first quarter. He had 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting. Once again, he played the entire 12 minutes, leading both teams in scoring.

• Sticking with JT, that game-winner was awesome. Feels like it’s been a while since he hit one like that.

• Jaylen Brown continues to rewrite the narrative surrounding his free-throw shooting. He led the Celtics in attempts by a considerable margin while knocking down nine of his ten charity stripe shots.

• Neemias Queta started his fourth game of the season and performed well on both sides of the floor.

• Jakob Poeltl and RJ Barrett had monster games for the Raptors.

• I’m a fan of how fast and fluid Toronto is playing right now.

• Payton Pritchard made two 3-point shots in this game, both coming as part of a third-quarter surge. On a night when he struggled, he still found a way to make an impact during an important stretch of play.

All eyes on defense

For the majority of this young season, the Celtics' defense has been far from stifling. They currently rank 11th in defensive rating, a far cry from last season's rearguard dominance.

Joe Mazzulla has toyed with drop coverage, having the big up-to-touch, playing a switch-heavy system and using a weakside roamer in double-big lineups. Each of those systems has made an impact, yet none has emerged as the go-to coverage thus far.