The rest of the Eastern Conference teams should swap scouting reports for prayer hymnals. If the Celtics are going to play like this on a night when Jayson Tatum was a mere mortal and Kristaps Porzingis was an injury absence, then supplication might be the best play.
Tatum’s 100th career playoff game was a dud — an ostensible gift from the Basketball Gods for the Cavaliers. It hardly mattered or slowed down the Green. Even with Tatum struggling by his lofty superstar standards, the Celtics pasted the Cavaliers, 120-95, in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals Tuesday night at TD Garden.
This loss should feel more demoralizing for the Cavaliers and the rest of the East “competition” than the calorie count after wolfing down a box of donuts when you’re aiming to get summer svelte. Cleveland’s superstar, Donovan Mitchell, roundly outplayed Tatum, scoring 33 points on 12-of-25 shooting to Tatum’s 18 points — a total stat-polished by some empty-calorie points after his teammates had finished the heavy lifting — on 7-for-19 shooting. But the Celtics still crushed Cleveland with ease.
The East is set up on a silver platter for the Celtics. They’ll have to be complicit in their demise to fall short of the NBA Finals. That was reinforced in this rout. No Prime Tatum? No problem. What does that say about the Celtics?
“Really what I’ve been saying all year — we’ve got a really, really talented team,” said Tatum, who’s shooting 40.6 percent from the field and 25 percent from three in these playoffs. “It shows the depth of our team, and how we can win games in a lot of different ways.”
The juxtaposition between Cleveland’s effort around its lead singer and that of the Celtics around an off-key JT couldn’t have been more stark. The Celtics were able to drown out Tatum’s chorus of clangs with hoops harmony. Mitchell was a solo artist with backup singers who didn’t know the lyrics.
Advertisement
Tatum contributed in other ways, finishing with a team-high 11 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 blocks. Coach Joe Mazzulla was also quick to point out his work as a screener.
But the man is one of the best in the world at putting the ball in the basket. That skill wasn’t at its customary level. He missed all five of his 3-pointers.
JT was just 4 of 15 from the field for 11 points late in the third quarter. Meanwhile, Mitchell was doing all he could to keep his team afloat and within hailing distance, pouring in 16 points in the third, including 11 of the Cavs’ final 13.
The IRS would’ve let Mitchell claim the rest of the Cavs as dependents.
Tatum wasn’t the head of the hoops household on this night. It’s a luxury that few of his superstar NBA brethren enjoy. It wasn’t an enjoyable evening for Tatum. You could tell that by his postgame mien, but his false start to the series didn’t dent a Celtics team that has a marshmallow-cushy margin for error and kumbaya vibes.
“Some guys have been through different experiences throughout their career and are at the point where winning is the most important thing,” said Mazzulla. “Nothing can get in the way of that. The guys do a great job of holding that standard.”
Advertisement
After three quarters, four Celtics had a dozen or more points — Derrick White (25), Jaylen Brown (24), Tatum (13), and Jrue Holiday (12). Sans Tatum’s usual offensive firepower, the Celtics were up 15 despite their best player scuffling to 5 of 17 from the floor.
The Cavaliers finally succumbed to the Celtics’ succor of Tatum in the perilous first few minutes of the fourth quarter when Cleveland coach J.B. Bickerstaff tried to give Mitchell a breather. Tatum was off the court too.
The Celtics opened the final frame on a 13-4 run, capped by Brown, who contributed a team-high 32 points along with 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and a message-sending block of his buddy Mitchell, drilling a deep three from the top of the key. That put the Celtics up 24.
When Tatum returned with 7:17 left, replacing Brown, the Celtics were up 20.
Game, set, match.
“That’s who they are,” said Mitchell. “They have different guys that can go off and have shown it, so this isn’t like a shock. It isn’t like a deflating thing.
“If it’s not JT, it can be JB. It can be Al [Horford]. It can be D-White. It can be Jrue Holiday It can be Sam Hauser, Payton Pritchard. They’ve shown it all season.
“I think we did a pretty good job on JT, but the other guys got going. So we have to find a way to contain everybody and be better on Thursday.”
Mitchell came into the contest averaging 32.2 points in his previous dozen games against the Green. He held up his end of the bargain. But the Cavs’ supporting cast shot a combined 25 for 65. After hitting 6 of its first 12 threes in the first quarter, Cleveland managed only 5 of 30 the rest of the way.
Advertisement
Only Mitchell was able to solve the Celtics’ half-court defense. The other Cavaliers required opportunities created by fast breaks or attacking in transition before the Celtics set their defense like concrete.
This is the stuff that NBA trade ultimatums are made of.
The Cavs entered without a playoff road win this postseason. Their three losses in Orlando in Round 1 were by an average of 22.7 points, including 38-point and 23-point defeats.
That sounded like a recipe for a Boston blowout. It was, despite Tatum’s terrible time and a mini-tantrum.
He picked up his third personal with 48.7 seconds left in the first half on an and-1 by Mitchell. It was Tatum’s second foul in 15 seconds. He committed a silly frustration foul after two misses at the rim.
It was bad form on a night when Tatum had bad shooting form. But his teammates picked him up, led by Brown, who got off to another strong start. The Other Jay hit his first five shots and scored 15 of his 20 first-half points in the first quarter.
The Celtics were great, so Tatum didn’t have to be.
The NBA worships at that altar of star power. But on this night, the team carried the superstar, not the other way around.
Advertisement
Christopher L. Gasper is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at christopher.gasper@globe.com. Follow him @cgasper and on Instagram @cgaspersports.