The Boston Celtics’ title defense began with a 107-103 win as they faced off against the Denver Nuggets in Abu Dhabi.
Payton Pritchard led the way for the Celtics with 21 points and 6 assists, shooting 6-12 from three. Jayson Tatum had 12, leading all of the starters after only playing the first half. Nikola Jokic finished with 14 points and 8 rebounds but it wasn’t enough as Boston was able to pull out a win in this back-and-forth game. Al Horford did not play, so Luke Kornet got the start for the Celtics.
1st Quarter
Both teams struggled out of the gate early as the Celtics began the game shooting 2-7 from the field and 0-5 from three.