Jayson Tatum, Celtics loss to Rockets draws 4 major concerns for Joe Mazzulla
It looks like Joe Mazzulla is bothered now. After playing down the Boston Celtics’ struggles last week, the team remains unable to really solve their woes. On Monday, they finally hit rock-bottom after losing to the league-worst Houston Rockets.
Jaylen Brown erupted for a 43-piece in the contest, while Jayson Tatum bagged 22 points for the Celtics. However, even those were not enough to take down a Rockets team that entered the showdown having won just 15 games.
The Rockets ended up winning 111-109 behind Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr. and Kenyon Martin Jr. who combined for 72 points.
In his postgame presser, Mazzulla admitted that their free throws, rebounding, turnovers and ability to take advantage of second chances are all big concerns. Interestingly, he made the confession just over a week after saying he has “zero” level of concern about the team’s recent skid.
“The free throws, the rebounding, the turnovers, the second chances… It’s concerning,” Mazzulla shared, per NBC Sports. The Celtics were outrebounded (48-38) and had more turnovers (13-10) against the Rockets.
With the loss to Houston, Boston has now gone 5-5 in the 10 games they have played since the All-Star break. They did beat the Atlanta Hawks and Portland Trail Blazers recently, but bowing down to a struggling team like the Rockets certainly shows there’s something wrong with the team.
Of course it’s not a reason to panic for the Celtics just yet, but is definitely a wake-up call for them. Boston can’t keep playing like they did on Monday if they want to win an NBA title.
