Reasons to celebrate in Miami
The Celtics had plenty of reasons to celebrate in Miami on Thursday night. Not only did they have a great shooting night and dominated the Heat 143-110 for their 5th straight loss. They got a 26 point performance from Jayson Tatum who was named an All-Star for the 5th time and will be a starter.
Tatum is averaging 27.0 PPG, 8.4 RPG and 4.4 APG for the Celtics this season. Leading the Celtics to the best record in the NBA. It’s the 4th straight season he will start in the All-Star game. Tatum was named the games MVP a year ago after a 55-point performance.
Tatum was voted into the starting spot with a formula based on the fans (50%), players (25%) and media (25%). Joining Tatum in the East will be Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Tyrese Haliburton and Damian Lillard. Jaylen Brown finished fourth among players in the frontcourt voting.LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander were named the starters for the Western Conference.
The 2024 NBA All-Star Game reserves will be announced on Feb. 1. Kristaps Porzingis, and Derrick White are candidates to join Tatum on the East roster. It will be the first time the East v. West format has been used since 2017. This year’s All-Star festivities are set for Feb. 18 in Indiana.
As for the game, the Celtics tonight shot 63 percents from the field and 55 percent from beyond the arc. The Celtics made 22 3-pointers and were solid once again from the stripe shooting 19-20. They’re just the 3rd team in NBA history to reach each of those marks in a game. The Celtics had more than twice as many defensive rebounds as Miami tonight (41-20). Kristaps Porzingis had 19 points before spraining his left ankle and leaving the game. He was seen joking on the floor and told reporters he was fine after the game.
