In a showdown of the best teams in each conference, the Boston Celtics came through with a dramatic 127-120 overtime win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night, improving to a perfect 18-0 at home this season — the best start in franchise history. The Celtics trailed by nine points with less than four minutes left in the fourth quarter but launched an impressive late run to force overtime.
It was toward the end of overtime when the true clutch danger of the league’s best team came to light. Even without Kristaps Porzingis, who missed the game due to a knee contusion, the Celtics executed to perfection on both ends of the court to close the game on a 9-0 run and improve to 29-8 on the season.
One sequence sums up Boston’s elite two-way ability — something that will serve them well as they attempt to overcome last postseason’s disappointment and finally break through to win the franchise’s first title in 16 years. With the game tied at 120 and just over a minute remaining, Tatum was isolated by Karl-Anthony Towns, probably Minnesota’s worst defender on the floor at the time. Through a series of crossovers and hesitations, Tatum proceeded to absolutely cook Towns, getting to the rim and finishing with a delicate lefty lay-in to take the lead.
This is exactly the kind of mismatch basketball that tends to determine postseason games, and Tatum is more than capable of scoring from all three levels against any defender. The star forward finished with 45 points, 26 of which came in the fourth quarter and overtime.
“When you just get in that moment, you live for those moments. You want to do whatever you can to help your team win,” Tatum said after the game. “In the back of my mind, I didn’t want to lose at home yet.”
On the very next possession, Boston’s lockdown guards took center stage, as Derrick White and offseason acquisition Jrue Holiday trapped Wolves star Anthony Edwards, resulting in a steal that they made look way too easy. Then, Holiday, teaming with championship experience, calmly dribbled down the court and found a wide-open Tatum, who hit nothing but net on a dagger 3-pointer from the wing.
Put the whole sequence together, and it’s a pristine example of just how devastating the Celtics can be at both ends of the floor during crunch time.
What a sequence in Boston!
- Tatum uses the handles to get the bucket
- Jrue Holiday comes away with the steal
- Tatum knocks down the 3
Celtics lead late and the Boston crowd is LOVING it ☘️
Timberwolves-Celtics | Live on the NBA App
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In just over 30 seconds, the Timberwolves went from a tie game to down five and were completely demoralized as they walked to the bench with the TD Garden crowd in a frenzy.
The Celtics are 12-7 in clutch games this season (within five points with five minutes remaining), boasting a robust net rating of plus-20.5. They know how to get it done down the stretch, with Porzingis and Holiday providing options on both ends of the floor that Joe Mazzulla simply didn’t have last year, as Tatum continues to grow into the closer that Boston needs him to be.
“There was distinct moments of brilliance when we just got to our spacing, attacked the right matchup and made the right play for the team,” Mazzulla said after Wednesday’s win. “I knew if we could just get back to that … we didn’t need to try to win the game on one possession. So I thought our guys did a great job just regaining our poise.”