3 takeaways from the Boston Celtics 126-97 win vs. the Sacramento Kings

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Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown scored 32 and 30, respectively, as the Boston Celtics remained unbeaten on their West Coast swing. Here are some takeaways from their 126-97 win over the Sacramento Kings.

3 takeaways from the Boston Celtics 126-97 win vs. the Sacramento Kings

1. Three-point shooting was back… for one night

In a statement that may sound repetitive, the Celtics are not a good three-point shooting team. But Friday night was the exception to that season-long rule. Led by Tatum’s 7-for-10 and Payton Pritchard’s going 4-for-4 from outside, Boston shot an outstanding 55 percent from range (22-for-40).

The only other time their percentage was reached that mark was in a 135-87 beatdown of the Philadelphia 76ers when they shot 25-of-45 from distance. No one is expecting to see this type of accuracy on a nightly basis, but it looks and feels great when shots go in at a high rate like that. Ball and player movement are really making this offense run smoothly, and when everyone is touching the ball, the C’s play harder on the defensive end of the floor.

2. Defense not taking nights

Yes, it was the Sacramento Kings, but this defense held them to 97 points. There is a reason why this team is number one in defense - they are playing like this against everyone! This is still the NBA and if you take a night off defensively you could end up getting beat by 25 or more. 

Coach Ime Udoka has this team playing aggressive defense at every position, and that kind of defense can wear a team down over 48 minutes. I love that everyone who steps on the floor as of late is giving energy and effort, and the numbers back that up!

3. Keep rising to the top

After defeating the Kings, the Celtics are sitting at fourth place in the Eastern Conference. This puts them one game behind the Sixers and Milwaukee Bucks in second and third. While catching Miami for the top spot may be out of the question (for now), moving up to the two seed is not. 

The Celtics have games remaining against the Heat (March 30) and the Bucks (April 7 in Milwaukee), so there is a slight chance to catch either or both of them. Boston does have a tough 11 games remaining, though. Among them are Denver, Utah, Chicago, Toronto, and Memphis. But this defense and Tatum becoming an automatic bucket gives great optimism that they can rise to the top of the East!

Tune in on Sunday night as the Celtics face off against the Denver Nuggets. Game time is set for 8:00 p.m.