PHOENIX — Celtics forward Jayson Tatum put a brief scare into the Celtics when he sprained his ankle against the Kings on Monday night. He made it clear Wednesday that he should be just fine, completing a lengthy workout at the team’s morning shootaround before going through another before Boston’s game against the Suns.
Tatum was eventually ruled out, most likely for precautionary reasons and rest, but the Celtics hardly needed him as they rolled to a 132-102 victory anyway. It was Boston’s seventh win in a row and 12th in 13 games.
Kristaps Porzingis had 30 points and 8 rebounds and Jaylen Brown added 24 to lead Boston.
The Celtics set the tone at the start by spraying passes to open 3-point shooters, and the Suns’ minimal level of effort expended to make this approach difficult gave Boston no reason to stop. Twelve of the Celtics’ first 13 shots came from beyond the arc, with Porzingis’s missed putback dunk the only outlier. Boston finished the opening quarter 10 for 17 from beyond the arc.
The Suns lingered in the first quarter thanks for their work closer to the rim, and the presence of Kevin Durant (30 points). The ageless superstar poured in 16 points on 6 of 8 shooting, helping the Suns pull within 42-38 at the start of the second period.
Phoenix shot 62.5 percent from the field in the quarter, but the massive 3-point margin left them with a deficit anyway.
The Celtics’ offense cooled slightly, but it hardly mattered, because Phoenix’s cratered. The Suns missed all nine of their 3-point attempts in the second period. During one sequence with three minutes left, Al Horford smothered a Royce O’Neale driving layup attempt, and on the ensuing inbounds play, Brown pestered Durant and stripped the ball from him, one of five Suns turnovers in the quarter.
Boston led by as many as 25 points and took a 73-54 lead to the break. In the third quarter, Brown ensured that Phoenix could never even entertain thoughts of a comeback. He roared down the lane for a ferocious one-handed dunk before drilling a fadeaway 3, as the Celtics stretched their lead to as many as 34 points.
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.
