Celtics

The Celtics wrapped up their six-game road trip with a dominant win over the Kings as Robert Williams made his return. We share our takeaways from Boston's.

Tatum kept his foot on the gas for the final three frames and was particularly lethal from inside the arc. Jayson Tatum wasn't at his best during the road trip, but he finished it off with a brilliant performance in Sacramento. It's no coincidence their best game of the month came on the night of his return. He returned to the court on Tuesday night and his impact was felt right away. Still, it's clear this is a different Celtics team when Williams is in the mix. They entered Tuesday's action with 12.2 turnovers per game since the All-Star break, but they had only six in Sunday's loss to Utah and excelled in that category again in Sacramento.

The Celtics were back to virtually full strength when they took on the Kings on Tuesday.

But if that lineup will be one Mazzulla plans to deploy in the playoffs, getting that five-man unit some minutes won’t hurt over the last nine games of the season. [Williams told The Athletic’s Jay King](https://twitter.com/ByJayKing/status/1638399223564763136) after the game in Sacramento. [Massachusetts sports betting](https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.masslive.com%2Fbetting%2Fmassachusetts%2F&data=05%7C01%7Cjpignati%40masslive.com%7C010733e46ca1457bc99908db1fff178d%7C1fe6294574e64203848fb9b82929f9d4%7C0%7C0%7C638138952731386512%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=Issu2DeyfBSPFI2VScVTGIkBOA0oIF8zi7h%2B6mfTSFg%3D&reserved=0)is live. The double big lineup featuring Williams, Tatum, Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown and Al Horford has played just 10 games and 81 minutes this season. The lineup has mostly struggled, but the sample size isn’t big enough to make any huge takeaways. So those are all positives signs he should be nearing full strength for the Celtics. [Get started with $200 in bonus bets](https://sportsbook.draftkings.com/ma-sports-betting?wpcid=216010&wpcn=StateLaunch&wpcrid=&wpscn=&wpsrc=XL+Media) Instead, Derrick White got the start as he’s been a solid fit with the starters throughout the season. Jayson Tatum — who’s said multiple times how much he loves playing with Williams — detailed what the big man brought to the Celtics in his return. Notably, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla elected not to start Williams as part of the double big lineup. “Obviously we’re a lot bigger when he’s out there,” Tatum told reporters after the game. Obviously we didn’t have (Payton Pritchard) out there.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Jayson Tatum scored 36 points and the Boston Celtics ended a long road trip on a high note by beating the Sacramento Kings 132-109 ...

... The Celtics had 22 assists before committing their second turnover of the game midway through the third quarter. He was also called for a technical foul in the third quarter. At the end of the day we just had to fight through it and do a better job in the second half." "I thought him and Jaylen did a great job controlling the game with their decision-making." "I was pleased with the mindset," Mazzulla said. It won four of six on the trip.

At the end of the day, I feel like we all need to understand what we're playing for,” the veteran big man told The Athletic.

[Malcolm Brogdon](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/malcolm-brogdon-nZL21j2daIE6nIpI/) preached the importance of this six-game road swing after three bad losses shortly before it started, but his team followed up by falling to the lowly [Rockets](https://theathletic.com/nba/team/rockets/) on the second game of the trip. [Derrick White](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/derrick-white-btl33fruaaNWhIrW/) to [Grant Williams](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/grant-williams-ZKR4PurwehHcDFw2/). It’s something that’s hard to maintain, but that’s the standard.” “That’s just kind of how we need to play,” Horford said. Grant Williams deflected the ball away to Brogdon for the steal. As Tatum pointed out, Robert Williams “makes a world of difference” for the Celtics. [Robert Williams](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/robert-williams-LEhMNrHYNoFDLqTs/) came back from an eight-game absence to infuse his team with energy. [Al Horford](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/al-horford-1bdxkLwov50QIyiQ/) pumped his fist in the air. Horford didn’t want the Celtics to wait. Tatum snapped back from a rough outing against [Utah](https://theathletic.com/nba/team/jazz/) with 36 points on 14-for-25 shooting. According to Williams, Horford preached to the Celtics that it’s time to ramp things up before the playoffs and they can no longer afford little mistakes. Before a recent film session, teammates said he urged them to dial up the urgency and start taking care of the smaller details.

Sacramento Kings follow loss to Utah Jazz with loss to Boston Celtics at Golden 1 Center on big night for Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.

The Celtics hit 7 of 10 from 3-point range in the third to take a 100-85 lead into the fourth. Guard Kevin Huerter missed his third straight game with an injury to his right popliteus, a muscle behind the knee. “They beat us to every ball,” Fox said. Fox had 18 points, but Sacramento was minus-34 in his 28:34 on the court. “But it’s not an excuse, it’s part of the schedule. Your cuts have to be extremely hard, the ball has to be moved crisp, and if you catch the ball and somebody’s closing out to you, you can’t hesitate. They beat the Kings with big scoring nights from their best players. “You gotta sprint off a screen and sometimes slip to the rim to cause a chain reaction. And as much as the Kings’ have enjoyed changing the culture of the franchise and all the excitement surrounding the “Beam Team,” simply making the postseason isn’t going to be enough to satisfy head coach Mike Brown or his players. Boston often switched off Sacramento’s screens, leading to more isolation ball and fewer open looks than the Kings are used to getting. They did it while taking care of the ball, turning it over just five times, leading to six points for Sacramento. They know the physicality it takes.

Would you rather have Jayon Tatum start shooting 37% on pull-up threes or have a Marcus Smart that's always 100% in control? Starting off with a tough one.

If you pay Jaylen the supermax, that just drives you deeper and deeper into the luxury tax. The Celtics are MUCH better with Grant in the fourth than Derrick for some reason. Clam chowder and it’s not close. And after those comments he made today that didn’t exactly laud the virtues of Boston, I can’t blame anyone for hoping we can give Jaylen as much money as possible to keep him around. You still might get healthy Rob, but that’s obviously far from a sure thing and he’s clearly the biggest health risk of any of those guys. If you’re confident he’s coming back even without the supermax, then the best thing from a team building standpoint is that he doesn’t make All-NBA and he’s on a normal max making a paltry 50-ish million a year. It would also allow us to pay him more than anyone else in free agency, all but guaranteeing he sticks around for his next contract. But, guaranteeing both Jays, Al, Smart, and Brogdon are completely healthy for a full playoff run is tremendously valuable. [In this episode](https://open.spotify.com/episode/4kLnQoGA0RDAm8FPTIlC0o?si=b1f968d688cf4533), Ben, Jake, and I lament the lost opportunity of the Utah game and provide some positivity. If you could guarantee he’s elite on pull-ups, he’d launch himself back into the MVP conversation. The initial instinct is to guarantee the Timelord is manipulating the space-time continuum all through the playoffs. What we had the most fun doing though was another round of [Celtics](https://www.celticsblog.com) Would You Rather.

Jayson Tatum scored 36 points and the Boston Celtics ended a long road trip on a high note by beating the Sacramento Kings 132-109.

- … Sabonis’ 12 triple-doubles are second in the league this season to Denver’s Nikola Jokic, who has 28. Kings: Swingman Kevin Huerter (knee) missed his third straight game but could return to practice on Thursday. He was also called for a technical foul in the third quarter. … The Celtics had 22 assists before committing their second turnover of the game midway through the third quarter. At the end of the day we just had to fight through it and do a better job in the second half.” The Kings are trying to clinch their first playoff berth since 2006 — the longest postseason drought in NBA history. He had six points and seven rebounds in 21 minutes off the bench. “I was pleased with the mindset,” Mazzulla said. “They kicked our behinds,” coach Mike Brown said. “I thought him and Jaylen did a great job controlling the game with their decision-making.” It won four of six on the trip.

That contract would begin at 35 percent of the 2024-25 salary cap and contain 8 percent annual raises. But if he doesn't make an All-NBA team, the Celtics may ...

If the new CBA limits teams to offering no more than 140% of the player's previous salary as the starting salary of an extension rather than 150%, the Celtics would still come in a few million below what Brown could earn as a free agent. Whether the Celtics can offer Brown such a deal this summer will come down not only to his All-NBA status, but also what the new CBA has in store. Regardless of whether the Celtics could offer him 140% of his 2023-24 salary ($43.0 million) or 150% ($46.1 million), both would exceed his max salary under a $140.7 million cap. If the 2024-25 cap lands at $140.7 million, Brown would be eligible for a five-year, $285.6 million (!) supermax. He'd be eligible to sign a five-year, $244.8 million max deal with the Celtics (8% annual raises) or a four-year, $181.5 million deal with any other team (5% annual raises). With Brown set to earn $30.7 million in the final year of his contract next season, the Celtics can offer him no more than $36.9 million as the starting salary of an extension if doesn't make an All-NBA team. If it lands at $150 million, for example, he'd be eligible to sign a new contract with a starting salary of $45 million as a free agent. Regardless of whether Brown re-signs with the Celtics or heads elsewhere, his max deal would start at $42.2 million (30% of the $140.7 million cap). If that change goes into effect this summer, the Celtics should be able to offer Brown a full max or near-max extension, depending on where the salary cap lands in 2024-25. Under the NBA's current collective bargaining agreement, teams can offer players no more than 120% of their previous salary or 120% of the estimated average salary (whichever is greater) as the starting salary of a new extension. But if he doesn't make an All-NBA team, the Celtics may be far more limited in what they can offer him in an extension. If Brown makes an All-NBA team, he'll be eligible to sign a four-year supermax extension with the Celtics this summer.

Jaylen Brown was recently in the news because of his noncommittal comments about staying long-term with the Celtics.

[Massachusetts sports betting](https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.masslive.com%2Fbetting%2Fmassachusetts%2F&data=05%7C01%7Cjpignati%40masslive.com%7C010733e46ca1457bc99908db1fff178d%7C1fe6294574e64203848fb9b82929f9d4%7C0%7C0%7C638138952731386512%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=Issu2DeyfBSPFI2VScVTGIkBOA0oIF8zi7h%2B6mfTSFg%3D&reserved=0)is live. But Brown is seemingly in a solid spot as one of the faces of the franchise in Boston as he’s been an All-Star for two of the past three seasons. [Get started with $200 in bonus bets](https://sportsbook.draftkings.com/ma-sports-betting?wpcid=216010&wpcn=StateLaunch&wpcrid=&wpscn=&wpsrc=XL+Media) In the piece, [Brown also talked about how he set up a three-way phone call](https://www.masslive.com/celtics/2023/03/amid-kevin-durant-trade-rumors-jaylen-brown-held-3-way-call-with-brad-stevens-jayson-tatum.html) with Boston president Brad Stevens and Jayson Tatum when his name was in trade rumors for Kevin Durant. ... I keep constant communication with my teammates and my organization and we’ve gotta have everybody on board if we want to do what we say we want to do.” “If I want to say something in the future about the kind of things that have been floating around I will. Brown added that “sometimes when people write articles they get taken out of context especially when writers have their own agendas or whatever,” King reported. The 26-year-old will be a free agent in 2024 as long as he doesn’t sign an extension with the team beforehand, which is unlikely as of now. Brown started off, I will stay where I’m needed and treated correct.” The Celtics, pending CBA negotiations and Brown making an All-NBA team this season, can’t offer Brown a max contract until he hits free agency. But I will stay where I’m wanted.

Celtics star Jaylen Brown says he's considering setting the record straight after he made comments about his future in Boston that led to plenty of ...

"I keep a constant communication with my teammates and my organization," Brown said. "If I want to say something in the future about kind of things that's been floating around, I will. I'm focused on playing basketball and focused on winning games." In terms of speculation, etcera, I can't speculate on anything above what I'm doing right now." "On a 50-win team right now, which you can't take for granted. I will stay where I’m needed and treated correct."

After wrapping up a four-game road trip in Chicago, Brooklyn, Washington D.C. and then Utah, the Kings headed back home to play the second game of a back-to- ...

At the end of the day, we just had to fight through it and do a better job in the second half.” “Give a lot of credit to Mike Brown, he’s got the guys playing a lot better. “They beat us on all the hustle stats. They’ve been on a roll.” The Kings weren’t far behind, shooting 39 of 81 (48.1 percent) from the field and 17 of 44 (38.6 percent) from 3-point range. “I’ve been a fan of his game for a while now. But at the end of the day, you still have to say what happened out on the floor.” After outscoring Boston in the first quarter, Sacramento was outscored in the remaining three quarters. That’s part of the schedule and every team has gone through it. “You know, everybody has to play these types of games, so you got to play them. Boston had a 21-6 advantage in points off turnovers, only committing five giveaways to Sacramento’s 14. After wrapping up a four-game road trip in Chicago, Brooklyn, Washington D.C.

Jaylen Brown discusses his non-committal answer that's caused rampant speculation about his future with the Celtics.

Jayson Tatum catches the second defender in no-man's land here and that got Marcus Smart an open look: This is the growth of Jaylen Brown. He's trying ...

That’s something that will be necessary in the playoffs, and it’s good to see it in action with only a couple off weeks to go in the regular season. The game went from tightly contested to a blowout, and it was a steady flow of buckets from the Celtics that did it. It’s been bumpy and uneven, but everything is still there to play for with two-ish weeks to go in the regular season. The first was a focus on getting Tatum touches in the post. Now the Celtics are back to Boston. On the game’s first play, Jayson Tatum went to the post and drew a foul. Against Boston’s switches, that allowed Sabonis to go for 12 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in the first half. One of the best parts of this game was the Celtics stayed committed to playing the right way the whole way through. This time, the defender plays off a bit and Tatum shoots right over him: We said 4-2 would be a good trip, and the Celtics head back to Boston at 4-2 on the trip. He succeeds before dumping it off to Rob Williams for the dunk: [Sacramento Kings](https://www.sactownroyalty.com/) to end the trip.

Jaylen Brown was noncommittal when asked about his future plans in Boston. Adrian Wojnarowski explains why that's a 'realistic' play.

I thought the comments were actually kind of refreshing because he was being open and honest.” Because as talented as Boston is, probably the deepest roster in the league, this is a year-to-year proposition in the NBA.” Brown said he doesn’t know what his decision will be at the moment. “As much as we like it here and enjoy being here, you see where life takes you,” Brown told the Ringer. “Really what he’s doing is being realistic about the nature of the NBA,” ESPN’s Tim Legler said. Then he left to team up with Kevin Durant in Brooklyn. Earlier this month, Darius Slay, a Pro Bowl cornerback with the Philadelphia Eagles, tweeted: “Nothing but love Philly!! “You see how the process goes. “He is a thoughtful individual,” Wojnarowski said. “Not every player is going to give up his leverage when he talks about it publicly. He didn’t say that he’s planning to stay long term. He also didn’t say that he’s leaving.

Jaylen Brown's recent remarks started speculation over whether his final years in a Boston Celtics uniform could be drawing near, but he addressed those ...

3 overall in the 2016 NBA Draft. [Golden State Warriors](https://www.foxnews.com/category/sports/nba/golden-state-warriors) in six games. [CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM](https://www.foxnews.com/sports) [NBA STAR JA MORANT INSISTS HE 'NEVER HAD AN ALCOHOL PROBLEM,' SOUGHT HELP FOR STRESS MANAGEMENT](https://www.foxnews.com/sports/nba-star-ja-morant-insists-he-never-alcohol-problem-sought-help-stress-management) "Sometimes those things can get lost in translation, you know?" I'm focused on playing basketball and focused on winning games."

Robert Williams registered six points, seven rebounds, and a block in his return. He also helped the Celtics limit the Kings to five second-chance points.