Jayson Tatum and the Celtics returned to the floor after the All-Star break on Thursday and smacked the 76ers in a dominant victory.
Here are the takeaways.
Jayson Tatum dominated without scoring much
Jayson Tatum went into the break playing some of the best basketball of his career, and while Thursday’s game wasn’t a dominant 40-point performance, his triple-double was helpful as a narrative device – he was easily the best player on the floor, but he wasn’t the game’s top scorer.
Tatum was in complete control from the start. He assisted the Celtics’ second basket of the game – a nifty pick-and-roll layup by Porzingis that set the tone for the Celtics’ offense – and he scored his first basket a few minutes later.