NBA: Boston punish Charlotte's turnovers

Charlotte made sixteen three-pointers, Boston only eleven. The Celtics still won 114–93 at TD Garden, their home arena in Boston, on the night of Wednesday to Thursday in Brazzaville: the Hornets' thirty turnovers weighed more heavily than their long-range shooting.

This third win in three preseason games earns no victory in the regular-season standings. It does, however, give Boston another successful trial run before the season restarts. Against a Charlotte side still able to cut the deficit to five points in the final quarter, the Celtics found several answers: Jayson Tatum's passes to Mitchell Robinson, the contribution of their substitutes and a defence that piled up steals.

Charlotte fight back, then the bench responds

Boston finished the first quarter ahead, 28–20, and went into the locker room with a ten-point lead, 54–44. Tatum and Robinson in particular found their timing on lobs finished near the rim. The centre ended with five of five from the field, for twelve points and seven rebounds in seventeen minutes. Tatum, for his part, totalled nineteen points, eight rebounds and six assists.

The Hornets did not fade after the break. They won the third quarter 33–31, then Naz Reid hit a three-pointer early in the fourth to make it 85–80. Boston responded with a three from Baylor Scheierman. After two free throws from Brandon Miller, Robinson made his and Neemias Queta scored on a dunk: the Celtics were back ten points clear, 92–82.

Charlotte closed to 92–84 once more, before two three-point shots from Luka Garza and Hugo Gonzalez, off passes from Payton Pritchard. In twenty-three seconds, the gap went to fourteen points. Garza then added two baskets near the rim; at 105–88, on his second three-pointer with 6 min 32 left, Boston had clearly pulled away again. The final quarter ended 29–16 to the Celtics.

Why the threes were not enough

The difference between the two teams shows mainly in the number of chances to shoot. Boston attempted 92 field goals, Charlotte 75. The Hornets turned the ball over thirty times in total, against eleven for the Celtics: that many possessions ended before a shot could be built. Boston made sixteen steals and scored 56 points in the paint, against twenty for Charlotte. The Hornets' edge behind the three-point line did not make up for that difference.

Boston's substitutes also provided distinct solutions. Queta scored sixteen points and Garza fourteen, while Pritchard handed out eleven assists without a turnover. Derrick White added seventeen points and four steals. For Charlotte, Miller and Tidjane Salaün each scored sixteen points; Salaün notably made four of his eight three-point attempts. Those returns are something to build on, but ball movement still needs securing.

Joe Mazzulla had kept Tatum, White, Robinson, Paul George and Jordan Walsh in the starting five. It is a combination tested in preparation, not a definitive pecking order for the season. Boston will finish their preseason on Friday 16 October in Philadelphia, at 19 h local time, which is 0 h on Saturday 17 October in Brazzaville. The final fixture will above all show which pairings are used again; line-ups remain to be confirmed.

SNA contribution

Sources

• SNA: final result and scoring feed, retrieved on 15 October 2026.
• ESPN: final statistics for Charlotte–Boston, 14 October 2026.
• NBA: official box score.
• John Karalis, On SI: game observations, 15 October 2026.
• Souichi Terada, MassLive via Yahoo Sports: match report, 15 October 2026.
• Photo: Erik Drost, Payton Pritchard against Cleveland, 15 November 2021, CC BY 2.0. Archive image adapted to the cover format with SNA watermark; it does not show the 14 October 2026 game.