Game ID: 22400464
Boston Celtics @ Minnesota Timberwolves
Thursday, January 2, 2025 at 7:30 PM ET
Target Center, Minneapolis, MN
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
MIN 35 16 34 30 115BOS 28 34 29 27 118
BOS @ MIN ScoutingBOS @ MIN Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
MIN availability going into 12/25 · 1 day's restOUT Clark missed 12 since 11/26, out tonight
BACK Dillingham back 12/13 after 5, 9 min since (86% of 10)
MIN availability going into 12/27 · 1 day's restOUT Clark missed 13 since 11/26, out tonight
MIN availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restOUT Clark missed 14 since 11/26, out tonight
OUT Dillingham missed 2 since 12/25, out tonight
MIN availability going into 12/31 · 1 day's restOUT Clark missed 15 since 11/26, out tonight
OUT Dillingham missed 3 since 12/25, out tonight
MIN availability going into 1/02 · 1 day's restOUT Clark missed 16 since 11/26, out tonight
OUT Dillingham missed 4 since 12/25, out tonight
MIN availability going into 1/04 · 1 day's restOUT Clark missed 17 since 11/26, out tonight
OUT Dillingham missed 5 since 12/25, out tonight
MIN availability going into 1/06 · 1 day's restOUT Clark missed 18 since 11/26, out tonight
OUT Dillingham missed 6 since 12/25, out tonight
NEW DiVincenzo 26 to 31 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 1/07 · back-to-backOUT Clark missed 19 since 11/26, out tonight
OUT Dillingham missed 7 since 12/25, out tonight
MIN availability going into 1/09 · 1 day's restOUT Clark missed 20 since 11/26, returns tonight: 3 min (25% of 12)
OUT Dillingham missed 8 since 12/25, out tonight
BOS availability going into 12/25 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 2 since 12/21, returns tonight: 8 min (59% of 13)
OUT Scheierman missed 8 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Hauser back 12/23 after 2, 16 min since (78% of 21)
BOS availability going into 12/27 · 1 day's restOUT Scheierman missed 9 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Hauser back 12/23 after 2, 15 min since (71% of 21)
BACK Queta back 12/25 after 2, 8 min since (59% of 13)
BOS availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restOUT Holiday missed 2 since 12/25, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 10 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Hauser back 12/23 after 2, 16 min since (79% of 21)
BACK Queta back 12/25 after 2, 9 min since (64% of 13)
BOS availability going into 12/31 · 1 day's restOUT Holiday missed 3 since 12/25, returns tonight: 25 min (81% of 31)
OUT Porziņģis missed 2 since 12/27, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 11 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Hauser back 12/23 after 2, 17 min since (83% of 21)
BACK Queta back 12/25 after 2, 7 min since (56% of 13)
BOS availability going into 1/02 · 1 day's restOUT Porziņģis missed 3 since 12/27, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 12 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 12/31 after 3, 25 min since (81% of 31)
BACK Hauser back 12/23 after 2, 17 min since (83% of 21)
BACK Queta back 12/25 after 2, 10 min since (77% of 13)
BOS availability going into 1/03 · back-to-backOUT Porziņģis missed 4 since 12/27, returns tonight: 28 min (101% of 27)
OUT Scheierman missed 13 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 12/31 after 3, 32 min since (104% of 31)
BACK Queta back 12/25 after 2, 12 min since (94% of 13)
BOS availability going into 1/05 · 1 day's restOUT Brown missed 2 since 1/02, returns tonight: 40 min (114% of 35)
OUT Scheierman missed 14 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 12/31 after 3, 31 min since (99% of 31)
BACK Porziņģis back 1/03 after 4, 28 min since (101% of 27)
BOS availability going into 1/07 · 1 day's restOUT Scheierman missed 15 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Brown back 1/05 after 2, 40 min since (114% of 35)
BACK Holiday back 12/31 after 3, 31 min since (102% of 31)
BACK Porziņģis back 1/03 after 4, 28 min since (105% of 27)
BOS availability going into 1/10 · 2 days' restOUT Scheierman missed 16 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Brown back 1/05 after 2, 39 min since (113% of 35)
BACK Holiday back 12/31 after 3, 32 min since (102% of 31)
BACK Porziņģis back 1/03 after 4, 30 min since (112% of 27)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 110, shooting 46 percent and 38 from three, 15 free throws a game; Edwards at 20 and Randle at 19 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. One day's rest. Boston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 105, shooting 48 percent and 38 from three, 21 free throws a game; Brown at 29 and Tatum at 25 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Porziņģis (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the line, where Boston takes 21 free throws a game to Minnesota's 15 and the turnovers, Minnesota giving it away 16 times a game to Boston's 12. Call it Boston 113, Minnesota 109, Minnesota keeping it close.
12/25 @ DAL 105-99 — MIN notes
MIN won 105-99. MIN shot 47% (40 of 86) to DAL's 41%, 14 of 32 from three. Edwards led with 26 (11 of 24, 4 of 7 from three); Randle added 23, Gobert 14. The hinge was Q2, 31-16: a lead of 2 became 17, and the lead reached 28.
12/27 @ HOU 113-112 — MIN notes
MIN won 113-112. MIN shot 51% (42 of 83) to HOU's 49%, 21 of 43 from three. Randle led with 27 (10 of 16, 5 of 6 from three); Edwards added 24, DiVincenzo 22. The hinge was Q4, 37-28: MIN came in trailing by 8 and left it ahead by 1. Reid was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
12/29 vs SAS 112-110 — MIN notes
MIN won 112-110. MIN shot 43% (43 of 100) to SAS's 44%, 11 of 44 from three, and got to the line 19 times to SAS's 28. The glass went 56-41 for them. DiVincenzo led with 26 (8 of 15, 5 of 10 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Gobert added 17, Randle 16. The hinge was Q2, 32-12: MIN came in trailing by 8 and left it ahead by 12, and the lead reached 16. DiVincenzo was the night's best plus/minus at +23.
12/31 @ OKC 105-113 — MIN notes
MIN lost 105-113. MIN shot 49% (39 of 79) to OKC's 47%, 15 of 38 from three, and got to the line just 12 times against 18 fouls committed. MIN turned it over 23 times to OKC's 9, and OKC turned those into 16 steals. Edwards led with 20 (6 of 12, 4 of 7 from three); Reid added 19, Conley 16. Q4 was theirs, 30-24, the deficit cut from 14 to 8, but the other 3 periods went 89-75 against them. They led by as many as 12. Alexander-Walker's -12 in 19 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/02 vs BOS 115-118 — MIN notes
MIN lost 115-118. MIN shot 50% (37 of 74) to BOS's 50%, 21 of 39 from three, and went to the line 22 times to BOS's 6 — 20 points from the stripe to their 4. MIN turned it over 15 times to BOS's 3, and BOS turned those into 9 steals. The glass went 41-31 for them. Randle led with 27 (9 of 16, 5 of 7 from three); Reid added 20, McDaniels 19. Q1 was theirs, 35-28, but the other 3 periods went 90-80 against them. Edwards's -10 in 36 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/04 @ DET — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 110, shooting 47 percent and 36 from three, 18 free throws a game; Cunningham at 21 and Ivey at 19 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Fontecchio (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 110, shooting 48 percent and 42 from three, 16 free throws a game; Randle at 21 and Edwards at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest.
So: Detroit wins, and the game turns on the arc, Minnesota at 42 percent from three to Detroit's 36. Call it Detroit 111, Minnesota 110, Minnesota keeping it close.
1/06 vs LAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 114, shooting 47 percent and 41 from three, 19 free throws a game; Edwards at 25 and Randle at 20 a game. That is 3 straight losses. One day's rest. The Clippers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 110, shooting 48 percent and 33 from three, 19 free throws a game; Powell at 20 and Harden at 18 a game. One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the arc, Minnesota at 41 percent from three to the Clippers' 33. Call it Minnesota 110, the Clippers 109, the Clippers keeping it close.
1/07 @ NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 117, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 21 free throws a game; McCollum at 32 and Murphy III at 25 a game. Without Williamson (27 straight), Green (2 straight), Payton (14 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 113, shooting 46 percent and 40 from three, 19 free throws a game; Edwards at 28 and Reid at 15 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: New Orleans wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Minnesota has been plus-5 a night and New Orleans minus-3 and the turnovers, Minnesota giving it away 16 times a game to New Orleans's 12. Call it New Orleans 114, Minnesota 111, Minnesota keeping it close.
1/09 @ ORL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Orlando comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 100 a night and allowing 100, shooting 43 percent and 33 from three, 19 free throws a game; Carter Jr. at 14 and Suggs at 13 a game. Without Banchero (33 straight), Wagner (13 straight), Suggs (2 straight). 2 days' rest. Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 111, shooting 46 percent and 42 from three, 19 free throws a game; Edwards at 31 and Reid at 16 a game. One day's rest.
So: Orlando wins, and the game turns on the arc, Minnesota at 42 percent from three to Orlando's 33 and the turnovers, Minnesota giving it away 17 times a game to Orlando's 11. Call it Orlando 107, Minnesota 104, Minnesota keeping it close.
12/25 vs PHI 114-118 — BOS notes
BOS lost 114-118. BOS shot 45% (43 of 95) to PHI's 47%, 20 of 49 from three, and got to the line 13 times to PHI's 19. BOS turned it over 13 times to PHI's 6, and PHI turned those into 10 steals. The glass went 51-39 for them. Tatum led with 32 (11 of 20, 4 of 8 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); Brown added 23, White 21. Q3 was theirs, 24-16, the deficit cut from 8 to 0, but the other 3 periods went 102-90 against them.
12/27 vs IND 142-105 — BOS notes
BOS won 142-105. BOS shot 51% (47 of 92) to IND's 42%, 23 of 56 from three. The glass went 52-39 for them. Brown led with 44 (16 of 24, 6 of 11 from three, 6 of 6 at the line); Tatum added 22, Pritchard 18. The hinge was Q1, 39-22: from level to 17 ahead, and the lead reached 38. Brown was the night's best plus/minus at +30.
12/29 vs IND 114-123 — BOS notes
BOS lost 114-123. BOS shot 46% (43 of 93) to IND's 53%, 16 of 54 from three, and got to the line 19 times to IND's 27. Brown led with 31 (13 of 21, 2 of 6 from three); Tatum added 22, Pritchard 21. Q1 was theirs, 29-27, but the other 3 periods went 96-85 against them. Tatum's -21 in 41 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/31 vs TOR 125-71 — BOS notes
BOS won 125-71. BOS shot 54% (47 of 87) to TOR's 31%, 22 of 43 from three. BOS turned it over 13 times to TOR's 21. Tatum led with 23 (6 of 13, 4 of 9 from three, 7 of 11 at the line); Pritchard added 19, White 16. The hinge was Q3, 45-18: a lead of 10 became 37, and the lead reached 56. Tatum was the night's best plus/minus at +38.
1/02 @ MIN 118-115 — BOS notes
BOS won 118-115. BOS shot 50% (46 of 92) to MIN's 50%, 22 of 57 from three, and got to the line 6 times to MIN's 22. BOS turned it over 3 times to MIN's 15. The glass went 31-41 against them. Tatum led with 33 (13 of 27, 6 of 17 from three); White added 26, Hauser 15. The hinge was Q2, 34-16: BOS came in trailing by 7 and left it ahead by 11. Queta was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
1/03 @ HOU — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 106, shooting 45 percent and 34 from three, 19 free throws a game; Sengun at 21 and Green at 18 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Eason (7 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 106, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 16 free throws a game; Brown at 28 and Tatum at 26 a game. Without Porziņģis (4 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the arc, Boston at 40 percent from three to Houston's 34 and the turnovers, Houston giving it away 13 times a game to Boston's 9. Call it Houston 113, Boston 112, Boston keeping it close.
1/05 @ OKC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 102, shooting 49 percent and 35 from three, 18 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 32 and Jal. Williams at 17 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Holmgren (24 straight), Caruso (6 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 100, shooting 50 percent and 41 from three, 17 free throws a game; Brown at 29 and Tatum at 24 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Brown (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the arc, Boston at 41 percent from three to OKC's 35 and the glass, where Boston has been plus-1 a night and OKC minus-4. Call it OKC 112, Boston 111, Boston keeping it close.
1/07 @ DEN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 127 a night and allowing 117, shooting 50 percent and 37 from three, 23 free throws a game; Jokić at 37 and Porter Jr. at 24 a game. Without Gordon (6 straight). 2 days' rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 100, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 16 free throws a game; Tatum at 25 and Brown at 21 a game. One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 100 a night to Denver's 117 and the line, where Denver takes 23 free throws a game to Boston's 16. Call it Denver 116, Boston 115, Boston keeping it close.
1/10 vs SAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 97, shooting 48 percent and 38 from three, 17 free throws a game; Tatum at 26 and White at 19 a game. 2 days' rest. Sacramento comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 111, shooting 46 percent and 38 from three, 23 free throws a game; Fox at 30 and Monk at 23 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 7 a night. Without Fox (2 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 97 a night to Sacramento's 111 and the glass, where Sacramento has been plus-7 a night and Boston plus-1. Call it Boston 115, Sacramento 110.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
MINAE A. Edwards
DD D. DiVincenzo
JM J. McDaniels
JM J. Minott
JR J. Randle
MC M. Conley
NA N. Alexander-Walker
NR N. Reid
RG R. Gobert
BOSAH A. Horford
DW D. White
JH J. Holiday
JT J. Tatum
JW J. Walsh
LK L. Kornet
NQ N. Queta
PP P. Pritchard
SH S. Hauser
MIN/BOS the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Jayson Tatum's big night lifts short-handed Celtics past Timberwolves 118-115
MINNEAPOLIS -- — Jayson Tatum had 33 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, and the Boston Celtics beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 118-115 on Thursday night.
Derrick White scored 26 points for Boston, while Sam Hauser — filling in for the injured Jaylen Brown — hit five 3-pointers and scored 15 points.
Julius Randle led Minnesota with 27 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Naz Reid added 20 points off the bench, while Jaden McDaniels had 19 points and eight boards.
The Timberwolves trailed by eight with two minutes to play but they had a chance to send it into overtime. However, Anthony Edwards ' 3-pointer fell short at the buzzer.
Takeaways Celtics: After winning 16 of its first 19 games, Boston had a ho-hum 8-6 record in December. A victory in Minnesota was a great way to kick off a four-game road trip to start 2025.
Timberwolves: Minnesota began the week with a chance to test itself against one of the heavy hitters in each conference. After a 113-105 loss at Oklahoma City on Tuesday, the Timberwolves came up just short against the Celtics.
Key moment With the Celtics leading 46-45 midway through the second quarter, Tatum hit the second of two free throws, then drained 3-pointers on Boston's next two possessions. That was part of a 16-6 run to close the second quarter, sending the Celtics into the locker room with a 62-51 lead.
Key stat Boston committed just four turnovers while the Timberwolves turned it over 16 times on the night.
Up next The Celtics visit Houston on Friday while the Timberwolves face the Pistons in Detroit on Saturday.