Derrick White finished with 18 points, eight assists, four rebounds, one steal and one block in the Celtics’ 122-112 loss to the Pacers. The Boston Celtics won’t be the first team to win the NBA Cup.The Indiana Pacers dashed those hopes with a 122-112 win over the C’s on Monday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.The atmosphere was reminiscent of a playoff game, and Tyrese Haliburton recorded his first career triple-double with a 26-point, 13-assist, 10-rebound performance. Unfortunately for the visitors, most of the fun stuff didn’t continue into the second half. While there’s a more detailed look at what went wrong on both sides here for those looking for a similar examination, one of the many common themes when things went wrong for the Celtics who reemerged on Monday was the inability to take care of the ball. Boston committed 18 turnovers, which led to 17 points for the Pacers. Ten of those freebies came in the second half.After committing nothing in the first 24 minutes, Derrick White scored five after halftime. No one else on either side scored more than two after the break. After the loss, White, who finished with 18 points, eight assists, the second-best of the game, four rebounds, a steal and a block, had this to say about his struggles in that area. “They had a lot of turnovers, which made them play faster,” the former Colorado Buffalo player said. “And personally I felt terrible in the second half, and that gave them a lot of easy looks on offense, so I have to be better in that aspect.”The 6-foot-1 guard is a stabilizing force for the Celtics and one of the most consistent players in the league.According to NBA.com, he came in at this tilt with a plus-9.6 plus-minus rating. This ranks first among those who have played at least 12 games and averaged 25 minutes or more. Since the start of last season, it has been rare for him to have difficulties. He earned a pass. Boston’s lack of focus in the third quarter is a multi-season problem and is far more concerning than the fact that White didn’t play well after the break against Indiana.The six-year veteran also talked about it.“I’m not sure, to be honest. We have to do something to get out of the locker room better and play 48 minutes. It starts with us, the starters, and we have to improve.Full screenvolume_offFollowingStayThe Boston Celtics will not be the first team to win the NBA Cup.The Indiana Pacers dashed those hopes with a 122-112 victory over the C’s Monday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.The atmosphere felt like a playoff game and Tyrese Haliburton recorded his first career triple-double with a performance of 26 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds.Unfortunately for the visitors, most of the good times didn’t last into the second half. Here’s a more detailed look at what went wrong on both sides, for those who want such an investigation. One of the many common problems when things go bad for the Celtics, which resurfaced on Monday, is that they haven’t taken care of the ball.Boston committed 18 turnovers, giving the Pacers 17 points. Ten of those giveaways occurred in the second half.After not scoring a goal in the first 24 minutes, Derrick White scored five goals after the break. No one else from either side scored more than two goals after the break. After the loss, White, who finished with 18 points, eight assists, the second-best of the game, four rebounds, a steal and a block, had this to say about his struggles in that area.“They had a lot of turnovers, which made them play faster,” the former Colorado Buffalo player said. “And personally I felt terrible in the second half, and that gave them a lot of easy looks on offense, so I have to be better in that aspect.”The 6-foot-1 guard is a stabilizing force for the Celtics and one of the most consistent players in the league.According to NBA.com, he came in at this tilt with a plus-9.6 plus-minus rating. This ranks first among those who have played at least 12 games and averaged 25 minutes or more. Since the start of last season, it has been rare for him to have difficulties. He earned a pass.The fact that Boston wasn’t strong in the third quarter is a multi-season problem and is much more concerning than the fact that White didn’t play well after the break against Indiana.The six-year veteran also talked about it.“I’m not sure, to be honest. We have to do something to come out of this locker room better and play 48 minutes. It starts with us as starters and we have to improve.”The main problem in the third frame on Monday was their offensive approach.The Celtics’ offense lacked diversity. They didn’t attack the basket, they shot four free throws and they weren’t physical enough. There are also other opportunities to play inside-out basketball to create high-quality, paced threes. Boston could have intervened with Al Horford at the elbow or in the low post. The latter also offers the opportunity to have him act as a basket to help a team looking for points and play defense against the Pacers, who boast the highest scoring offense in the league and push the pace relentlessly.Finally, where were the point deductions? They also could have asked for more post-ups for Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum and Jrue Holiday.Instead, too often there was ineffective ball movement on the perimeter and someone blocked a 3-pointer out of rhythm. The visitors shot 40.9% from the field, including 3/10 from beyond the arc in the third quarter.And their approach led to six turnovers. Indiana turned it into seven points, fueling the hosts and the crowd.But as coach Joe Mazzulla recently said: “It’s always something different.”As the Celtics figure out how to convert the league’s top six into the Banner 18, the defense must be at the forefront of their identity and their offense can’t fall for low-quality threes.If they can become consistent in these areas and stay healthy, they should finish the season as champions. If you don’t, you may miss out on a great opportunity to win an NBA title. Who knows what changes this would bring?
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