Jalen Brunson steps up with a 39-point double-double to put New York 1 win from its 1st trip to the East Finals in 25 years.
NEW YORK — The Boston Celtics’ season is on the brink. And next season may also be in serious jeopardy because of what happened in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Monday.
The Celtics blew another double-digit, second-half lead (this one 14 points), lost 121-113 and now trail the series 3-1. More importantly, All-Star Jayson Tatum suffered what appeared to be a serious right leg injury with a little more than three minutes left in the fourth quarter as he lunged for a loose ball.
The Knicks had turned that 14-point deficit into a nine-point lead then, and the Celtics couldn’t mount a comeback without their best player, who had scored a game-high 42 points with eight rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocks.
Jalen Brunson’s 39 points and 12 assists (with just one turnover) led the Knicks, who had by far their best offensive game of the series.
Here are some notes, quotes, numbers and film, with New York just one win away from its first trip to the conference finals in 25 years …
1. Knicks’ offense comes alive
The first three games of this series were the Knicks’ worst three-game stretch of offense all season (101.4 points scored per 100 possessions). Their comebacks in Games 1 and 2 were more about the Celtics’ offense scoring an anemic 84 points on 98 possessions after halftime in those two games.
While the Celtics weren’t as efficient on Monday as they were in Game 3, they still scored 113 points on just 94 possessions (120.2 per 100). That was, statistically, the Knicks’ second-worst defensive game of these playoffs.
But on the other end of the floor, it was their best. After shooting just 50% in the paint in Game 3, they were 32-for-44 (73%) in the paint on Monday. They did enough from 3-point range to make their 64-32 paint advantage hold up.
Karl-Anthony Towns still hasn’t found his 3-point shot (1-for-10 from deep in the series), but took advantage of smaller defenders inside and scored 23 points on 11-for-15 shooting. OG Anunoby (20 on 8-for-14) made some timely shots, and the combination of Brunson and Mikal Bridges couldn’t be stopped as New York scored an amazing 70 points on 47 possessions in the second half.
Of course, offense like that doesn’t come without at least a little help from the opposition.
“It was terrible defensively tonight, to be frank,” Jaylen Brown said afterward. “No resistance.”
2. Jalen Brunson remains that dude
The Celtics had the league’s fourth-ranked defense in the regular season, and they have great defenders in all shapes and sizes. That doesn’t matter to the 6-foot-2 Brunson, who scored 27 of his 39 points in the paint (18) or at the free throw line.
His favorite targets continue to be the Celtics’ bigs. Per Second Spectrum tracking, the Knicks set 33 ball screens for Brunson with the player that either Kristaps Porziņģis (21) or Al Horford (12) was defending, and the Knicks scored 37 points on 30 chances (1.23 per) when doing so.
Brunson also had his way with Derrick White, against whom he scored 12 points, including four late in the third quarter when Brunson had 18 of the Knicks’ 37. White is a terrific defender, but Brunson is seemingly too strong for him.
One of those buckets late in the third was Brunson just bullying White into the paint so that he could get a comfortable, turnaround jumper from the right baseline …
Brunson keeps delivering huge playoff performances for the Knicks, even when they fall behind against the defending champions. He’s now averaged 30.2 points over his 34 playoff games with New York, with only Phoenix’s Devin Booker (32.1 in 15 games) having a higher scoring average over the last three postseasons.
“When times get tough like that, you know he’s never going to dwell on the moment,” Bridges said of Brunson. “He’s going to stay locked in and get us there. He just wants to win.
“He knows what he likes on the court, where he wants to get to. But I really think it’s the will to win a game that he turns up another level, because he doesn’t want to lose. It’s great to watch and I’m glad he’s on my side.”
3. Another big fourth quarter for Bridges
Bridges was the spark the Knicks needed in Game 2, scoring 14 of their first 16 points in the fourth quarter as they made a second straight comeback from 20 points down.
They weren’t in such a big hole in Game 4, but he again came up big early and often in the final period.
The Knicks’ offense ran through Bridges with Brunson off the floor to start the fourth. They even ran the same play for him on the first three possessions of the period.
On all three possessions, the ball was entered to Bridges on the left side of the floor before Mitchell Robinson came over with a screen.
- On the first, Luke Kornet (Robinson’s defender) was in drop coverage. Bridges kept White (trailing the screen) on his hip and got to his spot, draining a fadeaway from just inside the free-throw line.
- On the next possession, he kept White on his hip again and was able to get to the baseline, draining another fadeaway over Kornet’s contest …
- The Celtics adjusted on the next possession. Kornet switched the screen and, when Bridges isolated, White came back with a double-team …
Josh Hart flashed to the nail but missed his fadeaway from just inside the free-throw line. Still, it was big that Bridges drew that kind of attention from the Celtics, who generally don’t like to put two defenders on the ball.
It is also big that the Knicks have a second option through which they can run their fourth-quarter offense. Bridges (who played the entire second half on Monday) is now shooting 12-for-19 and has seven assists in fourth quarters in this series.
4. Celtics lose their MVP
The Celtics did not have an update on Tatum after the game, saying that he’ll get an MRI on Tuesday. But there were no signs of optimism.
“It’s tough,” Brown said. “There’s not really a lot to say.”
Tatum had to be carried off the court after he went down late in the fourth quarter with what appeared to be a lower leg injury.
The Celtics are 9-2 without Tatum this season, a mark that includes a 3-2 record against playoff teams. That record includes a win vs. Orlando in Game 2 of the first round.
Tatum is the driving force of the Celtics’ offense, leading the team in time of possession and usage rate. Even when Brown was awarded series MVP in the 2024 Eastern Conference Finals and NBA Finals, Tatum created most of the advantages that led to open shots.
If the Celtics hope to extend this series without their leading scorer, they must be much better defensively than they were in Game 4. They have scored efficiently against the league’s second-ranked defense as they won that first-round game without Tatum, and they’ve scored 118.8 points per 100 possessions in 102 total playoff minutes with Brown on the floor without Tatum.
They’re still the champs, they are rich in talent and their season isn’t over yet.
“I think everybody’s kind of at a loss for words, just because, one, losing the game, but obviously the concern for JT,” Brown said. “But we pick our heads back up tomorrow and go from there.”
5. Who can believe that the Knicks are here?
It doesn’t matter that the Knicks have been outscored (by two total points) over their 10 playoff games. It doesn’t matter that they’ve trailed all four games in this series by at least 14 points. And it doesn’t matter that they were 0-10 against the league’s three best teams in the regular season.
What matters is that they’re one game from eliminating the defending champs and reaching the conference finals in what looks like a wide-open race for the championship. The two teams that dominated the regular season — the Cleveland Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder — are in tough series of their own.
“We have a great opportunity,” Brunson said of where his team stands now. “We’re playing a really good team, and I don’t think we’re playing our best basketball yet. We have a team that’s fairly new this year and we still have a long way to go to be the best that we can be. There’s always time to learn for us. We’ve got to make sure that we’re never satisfied and have that student mentality.”
This series is far from over, but the Knicks are 5-0 on the road in the playoffs and can close it out in Game 5 in Boston on Wednesday (7 ET, TNT).
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John Schuhmann is a senior stats analyst for NBA.com. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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