Atlanta @ Boston preview
TD Garden
Last Meeting ( Jan 28, 2022 ) Boston 92, Atlanta 108
The Boston Celtics look to extend their seven-game winning streak on Sunday afternoon against the visiting Atlanta Hawks.
Boston returned home from a three-game road trip Friday and took down Denver, 108-102, for its ninth victory in the last 10 games.
The Celtics shot just 39.6 percent from the field against the Nuggets, but a 10-5 run during the final minutes helped them close out the win after trailing by as many 11 points. Denver was held to 42 points in the second half.
Derrick White was strong in his Boston debut, taking the floor less than 24 hours after being traded from San Antonio. White scored 15 points and added six rebounds and two assists off the bench after being cleared to play less than an hour before tip.
"He's a very smart player that does a lot of things very well," said Celtics coach Ime Udoka, who coached White as an assistant for the Spurs.
"We don't miss a beat with him out there. Space, defensive ability, shooting ability, simple things like running to corners and spacing -- things that have been ingrained in him and been drilled, and that carried over tonight."
Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 24 points and Marcus Smart had 22 points and five steals. Robert Williams had 15 points and a game-high 16 rebounds while he and Al Horford blocked three shots apiece for the Celtics, who haven't lost since their previous meeting with the Hawks, 108-92, on Jan. 28.
"A couple weeks ago, months ago, early on in the season, a game like this probably would have gotten away from us," Smart said. "... We didn't let anything fluster us. We kept trusting one another."
The Hawks, who didn't make a move at Thursday's trade deadline, head to Boston after a 136-121 home loss to San Antonio on Friday. They trailed by 17 in the first quarter and again at halftime, then faced a deficit of 26 less than four minutes into the third.
John Collins (heel pain) and Delon Wright (ankle) were both injured and couldn't finish the game.
Bogdan Bogdanovic led Atlanta with 23 points including five 3-pointers off the bench, but the team's overall effort against a non-contending team was a surprise.
"I don't understand where that came from," Atlanta coach Nate McMillan said. "As we've talked about the last couple of days, with the position we're in and the urgency we need to play with, we were just flat. ... They outworked us. They played harder than us. They executed better than us, and it happened for 48 minutes. This is a surprise."
Atlanta has lost three of four games overall and hasn't won on the road since a Jan. 23 victory at Charlotte.
The Hawks won the first two head-to-head meetings with Boston this season. John Collins and Trae Young recorded 21 points and nine rebounds apiece in their Jan. 28 home victory.
Young recorded his NBA-leading 13th 30-point, 10-assist game in a 133-112 Tuesday win over Indiana. He had 18 points, 11 assists and four rebounds in Atlanta's last contest.
--Field Level Media