The Celtics entered the game riding high after crushing the Knicks, but they found an unexpected challenge in Washington. Despite the Wizards having one of the worst records in the league last year, they stepped up on Thursday night. Thanks to a surge from Jordan Poole, who dropped 17 points in the opening frame, Washington stayed neck-and-neck with Boston for the first half, even holding a lead while the Celtics struggled to find their flow.
The tide eventually turned as Boston's superior depth and skill took over. After regaining their footing late in the second, the Celtics dominated the rest of the game, finishing with a comfortable 122-102 victory on the road.
Jayson Tatum remained a force, finishing with a double-double of 25 points and 11 rebounds, along with six assists. While his three-point shooting was a bit shaky (3-of-11), he was aggressive from the start, scoring 14 in the first quarter and heading into the locker room at halftime with 20 points and nine boards.
It was a birthday to remember for Jaylen Brown, who turned 28 and responded with a dominant 27-point effort. He looked stronger than ever, attacking the paint with confidence and knocking down three triples, including two quick strikes to open the fourth quarter, while adding eight rebounds and four steals to his stat line.
Derrick White continued to be a reliable third scoring option, chipping in 19 points for the second game in a row. He's been lethal from distance this season, hitting 10 of his 17 attempts (58.8%), continuing the sharpshooting trend he established during last year's playoffs.
Payton Pritchard provided a spark off the bench, erasing a poor Tuesday performance by hitting five three-pointers for 15 points—a crucial contribution with Sam Hauser out due to back pain. He even attempted one of his trademark heave-shots from half-court, though it unfortunately went off just after the buzzer sounded for the end of the third.
The result felt inevitable given the trajectories of both franchises: Boston is focused on defending their title, while Washington is essentially rebuilding, hoping to land the top pick next year to draft the highly anticipated Duke star, Cooper Flagg.
Washington's roster is currently very young, having traded away most veterans; they started two rookies, Alex Sarr and Bub Carrington, and rotated in Kyshawn George. Sarr's NBA welcome was a trial by fire; Tatum targeted the 7-foot rookie with three three-pointers, and a sequence of fouls drawn by Jrue Holiday helped fuel an 8-0 run for Boston.
The Wizards fought back with a 12-2 stretch, led by Poole's outside shooting, which briefly put them ahead 51-49 halfway through the second quarter. That rally was short-lived, however, as Boston took complete control, scoring 31 of the next 38 points, capped off by a few tough finishes at the rim from Brown.
Jordan Poole was the lone bright spot for Washington with 26 points, but he disappeared in the final three quarters, scoring only nine more. The rest of the Wizards were abysmal from deep, managing just one made three-pointer on 25 attempts.
With the game well in hand after a 34-19 third quarter, Joe Mazzulla gave his reserves some experience. Rookie Baylor Scheierman and two-way players JD Davison and Drew Peterson all made their debuts in the fourth. The Celtics now look ahead to Saturday, where they face Detroit in what is expected to be another one-sided affair.