The last time the Celtics faced MVP frontrunner Nikola Jokic and his Nuggets, Marcus Smart seemed to predict where he’d look to pass. He jumped in front of passing lanes, double teams and secondary rotations irritated him as he turned the ball over nine times.
Boston couldn’t pull that off on Sunday, but Jokic’s change in approach benefited the Celtics even more. He attack edtheir defense head-on midway through the first quarter, exactly what they wanted, scoring 12 points in just over five minutes to give the Nuggets an early lead.
Then, Daniel Theis scored seven straight points off the bench, Boston’s second unit established itself, and the lead kept ballooning from there.