Three guys, three duds as the Celtics start their NBA Cup run with a loss

BOSTON – The Celtics returned to the regular season with the start of their Emirates NBA Cup campaign against the Hawks.

Atlanta, strong was hampered by injuries, as Trae Young, De’Andre Hunter and Bogdan Bogdanovic, along with three others, were all sidelined Tuesday night. Needless to say, the (mostly) healthy Celtics were inadvertently given an advantage over the struggling Hawks. Boston head coach Joe Mazzulla even announced before kickoff that his co-stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown would be doing so not I’m working on a minute limit.

Ultimately, it was a valiant attempt to compete with an unfavorable hand Only enough for the Hawks to defeat the reigning champions.

Here are three guys and three duds after Boston’s 117-116 loss to Atlanta:

SUPPORT
Jaylen Brown
No one started the night with more determination than Brown, finishing the first quarter with 16 points on 14 of 22 shooting to ensure Boston didn’t let Atlanta get the better of them to comfortable. The 28-year-old finished the game with a 37-point lead, four rebounds and three assists. Brown’s importance continued to grow as Atlanta quelled the threat from Boston’s bench throughout the night.

Derrick White
Efficiency wasn’t Boston’s strong suit, but White helped mitigate the offensive woes that opened the door for Atlanta to move up just inches behind the Celtics, even with his damaged wings. White delivered 31 points and shot a much-needed 7-for-12 from 3-point territory to keep Boston from collapse.

Dyson Daniels
Atlanta head coach Quin Synder wouldn’t be able to keep up with Boston without an X-factor, and Daniels proved to be a crucial variable. Daniels gave the Hawks a team-high 28, shooting 12 of 21 from the field and a 1-for-5 performance from three, giving the Celtics some early trouble in the second half. Daniels also collected seven assists and six steals in 40 minutes.

Idiots
Boston’s outside shooting in the first half
Mazzulla ball is a two-sided coin and the Celtics felt the brunt of its bad side. Boston failed to muster any momentum beyond the arc in the first half, shooting an ineffective 9 of 25 (36%) from three three-pointers to start the half. The ice-cold hand made it difficult for players like Payton Pritchard and Jrue Holiday – who combined for nine points at halftime – to get going offensively.

Sales – on both sides
You’d have to look at the opening minutes of the third quarter to understand the theme that allowed the Hawks to compete – with an asterisk – with Boston’s title-favorite team. Atlanta And The Celtics didn’t give viewers the best display of ball handling or delivery. Boston (20) and Atlanta (16) combined for 36 turnovers.

Boston’s entire reserve unit
Pritchard and Sam Hauser are typically the ready-to-go pair, always able to maintain the scoring load when Mazzulla gives Boston’s starters rest minutes on the bench. But neither Pritchard nor Hauser got going as they both combined for 12 points, leaving the starters to undo Atlanta’s outstanding performance.

Pritchard shot 2-for-8 from the field while Hauser fired just three shots, scoring all of the goals from Boston’s bench.