Jaylen Brown got some space, a head of steam, and switched to his left hand. He took one more dribble and switched back to his right hand as he flew over Clint Capela and threw it down on him.
Brown’s latest ferocious dunk was the highlight of another Celtics victory. But it’s what made that play happen that represented the night for the C’s. Moments before, Derrick White had missed a 3-pointer and the rebound went long. But Brown hustled after the ball and beat everyone to it.
Moments later, Brown was flexing with both of his arms.
The Celtics were outplayed, out-toughed, and out-hustled in almost every aspect of Friday’s loss to the Magic. Two nights later, the Celtics turned a hard lesson into a victory. Jayson Tatum scored 34 points and Jaylen Brown added 22 points to pace the Celtics, but it was those hustle plays, the small margins of the game that Joe Mazzulla always emphasizes that made the difference in a 113-103 victory over the Hawks.
“Those are the things that we have to fight to do all the time,” Mazzulla said. “It’s easier said than done, but that’s a recipe for winning.”
Sunday’s win was the type that Mazzulla has said since training camp that he wants to make a habit for these Celtics. Last season, they were too reliant on making 3-pointers to win games. They were 42-5 when shooting 35 percent or better from deep, and 15-20 when they shot below that mark.
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