Despite some heated moments during their game on Friday night, the Boston Celtics and Charlotte Hornets showed a lot of camaraderie afterward. The two teams are set to face each other again on Saturday night in Charlotte.
Many Celtics players have a good relationship with Hornets coach Charles Lee, who was an assistant coach in Boston last season when the Celtics won the NBA title.
“I think he definitely has his work cut for him,” Celtics guard Jaylen Brown said, “but I think he’s handling it with grace. I wish him well, just not in (this series).”
Jayson Tatum scored 32 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the Celtics’ 124-109 victory on Friday. After the game, Lee shared hugs with several Celtics players on the court. Now the Hornets have back-to-back games to try to find a way to win against the Celtics.
On Friday night, Charlotte’s Grant Williams and Miles Bridges were both ejected, and LaMelo Ball received a flagrant foul. Williams’ foul on Tatum raised some concerns.
“I’m glad that he’s fine,” said Boston coach Joe Mazzulla about Tatum. “What I like most is that he jumped right up, didn’t lay around, didn’t really faze him. … I’m happy that he’s OK. I just like how JT handled it.”
Still, the Celtics were frustrated with Williams, who played for Boston from 2019-20 to 2022-23.
“It was for-sure intentional,” Brown said. “Y’all see the same play? He hit him like it was a football play, like Ray Lewis coming across the middle.”
Williams told NBC Sports Boston, “Probably not a hard foul, definitely not intentional. Not trying to hurt anybody. We all know that’s one of my closest friends in the league.”
Lee has a close relationship with Mazzulla, which may have helped avoid bigger issues.
“He is just so open-minded, so creative,” Lee said about Mazzulla. “He just goes with his guts. If it’s something that he believes in, that he believes is going to help the team, he does it with full-on passion. I really admire that about him. It’s something that I try to do myself.”
After their first loss of the season, the Celtics bounced back to win two nights later in Charlotte. They outscored the Hornets 24-10 in the last 7 1/2 minutes, with 15 of those points coming from free throws.
Lee received a technical foul in the fourth quarter after he voiced his frustration about a no-call when Charlotte’s Tre Mann drove into the lane.
This may have been part of the Hornets’ frustration. By the end of the game, there were 47 free throws attempted, but only 12 of those were taken by the Hornets.
Earlier in the fourth quarter, Mazzulla was also given a technical foul while the Celtics were up by one point.
The Hornets likely appreciated LaMelo Ball’s performance, as he scored 31 points in 31 minutes, even though he fouled out. His four turnovers weren’t too concerning, but he only had four assists.
The Hornets will be looking for more from Tidjane Salaun, a 19-year-old rookie who scored nine points and grabbed six rebounds in 19 minutes off the bench on Friday night.
“I loved his energy tonight, I thought he gave us a great boost,” Lee said. “He’s grasping the speed of the game. … I really like him out there because he brings another layer of length and athleticism.”
The Celtics will want to review their perimeter defense after allowing 19 three-pointers, with six Charlotte players hitting two or more.
