BOSTON — The Celtics couldn’t find the Jayson Tatum and Kristaps Porziņģis combinations they used to dominate the Knicks late in their opening night win.
“I was looking to get K.P. going,” Jaylen Brown said. “(But) they had Kevin Love showing, so they were trying to get back to him and take away (Porziņģis)’s pick-and-pops.”
The Heat also forced Porziņģis into foul trouble and knocked him off his three-point rhythm. So the Celtics flashed their flexibility, feeding Derrick White for an 8-0 run in the fourth quarter and game-sealing three. They lined Brown up against mismatches for 22 points and received the continued benefit of Jrue Holiday’s hustle plays — while unleashing his passing.
“I think (Holiday)’s still learning,” Mazzulla said about Holiday after the Celtics beat the Knicks. “Especially when you’re out there with four guys that can dribble drive, you’ve gotta find your opportunities to play and find your opportunities to space and find your opportunities to screen. We’ve just gotta simplify it for him and for Derrick and Jaylen as a staff so they can get that flow together and play together.”
Boston did that when Holiday hit a decisive pull-up jumper on the roll two nights later, then caught a pass from White in the high post to funnel the ball to Brown for a last-second three that slammed the door on Miami, 119-111. Al Horford closed playing center after Porziņģis fouled out, and the Celtics overcame an early 13-point deficit to beat the Heat in a game reminiscent of their many recent battles that Erik Spoelstra called a rivalry pregame.
This time — the width of talent on the Celtics’ offensive end overwhelmed Miami in a 59-56 second half. The Heat, masters of the clutch with a 32-22 record in close games decided late last year, allowed Boston to shoot 5-for-5 and got outscored by 200 points per 100 possessions in a two-minute crunch time.
Brown hit a lefty layup and that final three three. Holiday scored and found White for three. Tatum drove through Miami’s back line and dunked to start the run. Each basket pushed Boston ahead by more than five points.
“It shows the depth of our team,” Tatum said. “We got a really, really talented team. Guys that can make shots and make plays. This was a really great team win and we figured it out. It felt good to win this way.”
Adebayo, who scored 27 points, attacked Porziņģis twice early and inflicted early foul trouble that Joe Mazzulla countered by shifting to a double-big look. That led to a game of force-on-force, Adebayo backing down Porziņģis and wings, Boston aggressively attacking the rim and the offensive glass.
Tyler Herro and Adebayo combined for a handoff game that would stand the test of time throughout the night against Boston’s drop while the Celtics relied on offensive rebounds and runs at the rim to stay within 5-6 points after an early Heat run built a 13-point lead. Brown poured in a put-back and attacked Dru Smith in isolation to break himself and the Celtics out of string of misses inside that led Mazzulla to insert Oshae Brissett for the first time this season.
“I study a lot of momentum,” Mazzulla said. “It’s something I learned. I had to learn the hard when we lost to Brooklyn last year. I think momentum’s a huge thing. I think there are ways that you can manipulate it, I think there are ways you can stop it. It’s just something that comes with instinct, knowing your team, knowing the situation and knowing your opponent. When you have guys that can make big momentum plays … Oshae Brissett, he didn’t play in game one, and he changed the game. That, to me, is what momentum is all about. He came in, he made a significant impact and he did his job at a high, high level.”
Smith fouled Brown shortly after Brissett entered, and Brissett tipped Brown’s missed free throw off a Miami player, grabbing three rebounds and throwing down a one-handed slam cutting off Tatum in a six-minute burst between quarters. Tatum nearly tied the game at 28 on a last-second heave he got fouled on, but he released it too late.
Miami countered, posting Thomas Bryant against Brissett and scoring to reset the lead. When Boston showed two on the ball, Miami found Smith for three on the weak side. The Celtics answered by getting Tatum off the ball, White feeding him for three and Porziņģis finding him inside, where Tatum returned to his post-up success from opening night.
Tatum’s layup and power post move through Jaime Jaquez Jr. helped overcome Miami’s 17-5 first quarter run. Brown identified mismatches, finishing through Lowry away from the ball after catching a pass from Tatum. He assisted White, who had fallen hard on his back trying to attack the basket, for a corner three when Kevin Love began hedging away from White to front Porziņģis in the post. Porziņģis, in turn, drew two defenders down low while catching a pass from Tatum and swung to Brown for three in the opposite corner.
Holiday cut and laid in an easy layup following a dump-off pass from White before Brown dunked after picking off Herro’s ensuing in-bounds pass for the go-ahead basket in the second. Boston’s next three players up found their moments on Friday, building a 60-55 halftime lead.
“It was the epitome of what our team can be when we play together,” Mazzulla said. “Each guy plays the best version of them and when one guy doesn’t have it, the next guy steps up. I thought we were really intentional about who was playing well, what the matchup was and what the spacing was. That’s what we have to become.”
White and Porziņģis continued the put-back party in the third, Porziņģis batting a Tatum miss off the glass and dunking over Love’s head for one of Boston’s 16 offensive rebounds. The Celtics recorded 11.5 offensive rebounds per game through their first two games, tied for 12th in the league.
Miami stayed close, riding a three-point play from Adebayo that became four when Porziņģis tossed the ball in the air to draw a technical after, along with a Kyle Lowry three set up by Brissett and White failing to recover an offensive rebound they sold out for along the sideline. Tatum, turning the ball over trailing by one, watched Holiday chase down Jaquez in transition for a block. Holiday buried a g0-ahead two, then Brissett got Tatum the ball back with another offensive board to set up a three and lead entering the fourth.
On a night where the Celtics overcame committing 15 turnovers, White and Holiday settled the offense late. The Heat returning to guards who became defensive mismatches like Herro, Smith and Lowry allowed White and Holiday to constantly enter actions. White also commanded the ball on a personal 8-0 run to shoot ahead by six, capped by a pull-up three that sent him in to a rare shouting frenzy along the Heat sideline.
Later, Tatum tossed the ball to Brown, who arrived atop the arc to get it, backed down Lowry and turned into a jumper before Adebayo reached in trying to poke the ball free. Tatum still scored 22 points, but got out of the way to let someone else seal the game late.
“The ball was just finding energy,” Tatum said. “A lot of guys were involved tonight on the offensive end, drawing two and finding the open man. It started with J.B. when he got the offensive rebound, seeing an easy one go in first, the game just starts to open up for you.”
