The Boston Celtics finished their four-game road trip with three straight victories, including a convincing 126-115 Christmas Day victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. Boston ended the day with the NBA’s best record at 23-6.
The Lakers fell to 16-15, leaving LeBron James to question how his team stacks up against the better teams in the league.
The Boston Celtics Took Care of LeBron James and the Lakers
The Celtics and the Lakers entered the 2023-24 NBA season tied for the most championships in history with 17. Although LA won the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament, the Celtics remain the favorite to win the 2024 NBA Finals.
They showed why on Christmas.
Once again, Boston got a balanced scoring attack, as all five starters finished with at least 18 points. Kristaps Porzingis led the way with 28 points, while Jayson Tatum finished with 25.
After the game, Tatum said the Celtics are an unselfish group, sacrificing statistics for victories.
“We all just kind of make it easier on each other,” he said per NBC Sports Boston. “Joe (Mazzulla) says success is going to look different for different guys on every single night. We all sacrifice to be a better team, a better group. Hopefully, it’s going to pay off in the end.”
The Celtics stormed out of the gates by scoring the game’s first 12 points. They held a 32-23 lead after the opening quarter. Boston trailed for the first time early in the third quarter after a James layup. Jrue Holiday snapped a 66-66 tie with a 3-pointer, and the Celtics never trailed again.
Jaylen Brown added 19 points. Holiday and Derrick White finished with 18. White also led the team with 11 assists.
The Celtics Left James Questioning Where the Lakers Stand
The loss was the fifth in six games for the stumbling Lakers, who find themselves in ninth place in the Western Conference.
Anthony Davis led all scorers with 40 points and pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds. James had 16 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists. Taurean Prince finished with 17 points.
LeBron James says the Lakers’ lack of health relative to the league’s top teams has been a challenge in developing the consistency needed to compete at their best. “We’re still trying to figure out our situation as far as how we want to continue to attack each game” pic.twitter.com/JdU0DjoOlQ
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) December 26, 2023
After the game, James said he was unsure how healthy his team is. He also said the Lakers aren’t where they want to be, and it showed against the NBA’s best.
“I don’t think we’re healthy right now,” James said, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “I don’t think we’re where we want to be to compete versus the top teams until we continue to get better and better, continue to work out habits.
“For us, we’re still trying to figure our situation out as far as how we want to continue to attack each game, but we’ll get better.”
Meanwhile, the Celtics were pleased with their all-around play and the fact they’re headed home after a 3-1 West Coast swing. Boston’s lone loss on the trip was in overtime against the Golden State Warriors.
“Very happy about the game we had as a team,” Porzingis said, per ESPN. “And honestly we played really good basketball. We just did not make or we did not shoot what we normally shoot from outside. But other than that, I think we played really well.”
