Celtics Coach, Joe Mazzulla, has been stressing the importance of hitting the offensive glass for second-chance points. It worked in last night's 116-106 win over Ime Udoka's Rockets (per NBA.com):
The Celtics outrebounded the Rockets 56-49 and had 17 offensive rebounds, helping them outscore the Rockets 23-10 in second-chance points.
“It’s something we’ve stressed this year, and it’s something we’ve gotten better at,” Mazzulla said. “On nights like this, it keeps baskets alive and gives us extra possessions.”
The top rebounders versus Houston were Jaylen Brown and Derrick White with 11 each, but it was the big man tandem of Luke Kornet and Kristaps Porzingis that combined for nine of Boston's 16 offensive boards. Even with limited minutes, Neemias Queta and Kornet lead The Green in offensive rebounds this season with 2.1 and 1.7 offensive boards per game, respectively.
I am reluctant to broach the idea of second-chance hoops resulting from offensive rebounds as "easy baskets" because of the effort required to make that play, so I will tag those plays as "opportunistic". And I will take "opportunistic" over "isolation" or "firing from the hinterlands" every time. Keep it up, Joe.
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