NBA Games don’t typically boil down to just one possession. But one possession can often tell the story of a game. This is “One Possession,” a recurring series where we highlight one notable sequence from every Celtics game during the 2026-27 season.
The Boston Celtics carved out a pretty clear identity last season: Play harder and smarter than the opponent, and try to dominate the margins. They piled up a bunch of wins because of it.
That’s the road map again this year, even with a new-look roster, but the Celtics lost their way at times in the season-opener in Detroit.
Boston built a 23-point second-half lead (72-50 after a Paul George 3-pointer with 8:32 to play in the third quarter), but the Pistons surged within a single possession later in that frame. The Celtics pushed their lead back to 12 early in the fourth frame and led 99-89 with 8:19 to play after a Derrick White 3-pointer.
Then the wheels came off.
Not only did the Pistons embark on an improbable 23-0 run, they needed little more than two minutes to erase that double-digit deficit and pull ahead 101-99. Both Payton Pritchard and Sam Hauser endured avoidable 3-shot fouls on Duncan Robinson early in the fourth quarter, further fueling Detroit’s offensive eruption, but it was often bad offense that led to poor defense for the Celtics.
Which sets the table for today’s possession. After watching the Pistons shuffle ahead, the Celtics desperately needed something to settle them down. Derrick White produced a live-ball turnover, but Boston lacked numbers in transition and the play quickly devolved into a Jayson Tatum isolation.
Despite drawing three defenders as he dribbled from beyond the arc, and despite having not made a 3-pointer on a day in which he would finish 0-for-7 from distance, Tatum elected to pull up with Detroit big man Jalen Duren leaping to contest.
The shot — which the NBA’s tracking gave just a 34.4 percent expected field goal percentage — rattled out, and things went from bad to worse.
Duren beat all the Celtics down the floor, got away with a little push off as Tatum tried to seal him off, and Ausar Thompson lobbed the ball over the top from the other end of the floor for a Duren and-one layup.
The Celtics didn’t work hard enough to generate good shots during Detroit’s run. Boston most certainly did not work hard enough to get back on defense and generate the stops that could have led to easier opportunities in transition. And in the span of less than four minutes, the Celtics went from up double digits to down 10 with 4:27 to play.
Fumbling away a big lead while poor offense leads to bad defense is not an unfamiliar storyline for the Celtics, who have routinely struggled to salt away games with what should be a comfortable cushion in recent seasons. The team has typically been able to catch itself despite making things interesting.
On Tuesday, Boston could not.
The maddening part is that Boston’s entire identity is built on being the harder-playing team. And yet in key spots, the effort was lacking. The Celtics didn’t run with White in transition, Tatum settled for a low-percentage pull-up as the offense went cold, and Mitchell Robinson was too slow getting back on defense as Duren got the and-one.
The Celtics pulled Robinson in favor of Neemias Queta after Duren’s bucket. Players said after the game that communication and effort need to be better all around.
Boston had uncharacteristic turnovers early that complicated matters. The fouls chasing Robinson beyond the 3-point arc in the fourth quarter might have been even more maddening. The Celtics didn’t dominate the margins the way they did throughout the preseason and allowed Detroit to be the more physical team overall.
The Celtics have to work harder for better possessions. They have to work harder to generate stops, especially when the other team has momentum. Boston didn’t work hard enough to maintain its identity in Detroit.
