1. Jaylen Brown’s left hand ailment mostly remains a mystery

Brown called the injury, seemingly aggravated during a steal attempt in New Orleans on Saturday, a strain or sprain in his left hand. He’s healthy enough to play and didn’t want to blame his five turnovers or 4-for-11 first-half shooting. He did acknowledge it impacted him on Wednesday, though. While expressing no long-term concerns, he noted that he’ll evaluate how he responds to it as information in case it worsens. Joe Mazzulla said before the game that Brown came away fine after getting the hand looked at, something he expressed wanting to do after entering Monday’s win in Charlotte questionable. He appeared on the injury report again before this latest win, leaning on defense to impact the game.

“In a game like tonight, even if it’s not going well, quote-unquote, offensively, (Brown’s) ability to rebound,” Mazzulla said. “I thought the two plays he made in the first half where he tried to take the charge on Holmgren, and then he got the block at the end of the quarter which saved the basket … it might not be going to your expectations offensively. How can you still impact the game? He’s taken pride in that.”

2. Brown also calls for more from Kristaps Porzingis

The super friends combined for the sequence of the night, Brown attempting to take a charge on Holmgren, who Boston held to 5-for-14 shooting, before Porzingis blocked him. Brown then kicked a pass behind his back to Porzingis for three as the big man rolled to 27 points and five blocks. His stellar defensive showing drew praise, along with some pressure, from Brown to showcase that caliber of play more often. A ring back to the 2022 Celtics’ collective and more open accountability. Mazzulla also acknowledged Porzingis’ growth in help positioning. The key to making double-big looks that Boston loves perform.

“K.P., he’s a key piece in everything we’re trying to do,” Brown said. “K.P. is physical when he’s challenging guys at the rim. When he’s alert to the doubles. He’s not flopping and he’s holding his ground. K.P. has been extremely impactful, so we just want to encourage to bring that side out, because the more we see that K.P., the less we’ll lose.”

3. Al Horford and Porzingis emerging as a real weapon together

Horford and Porzingis’ lineups together outscored opponents by 13.9 points per 100 possessions through their first 555 minutes together. An 11-minute rotation on Wednesday saw them limit the Thunder to 60 points per 100. On Saturday, the Pelicans only managed a 74 offensive rating against the duo. With Porzingis in help position and Horford guarding the pick-and-roll high, the combination shares some resemblance to what Horford and Robert Williams III achieved during the 2022 Finals run. Their ability to both shoot solidifies it as a playoff staple, with Mazzulla’s juggling of every double-big look leading him back to the most obvious pairing. Luke Kornet and Xavier Tillman Sr. both sat out rotation minutes in Wednesday’s win. Pritchard and Sam Hauser rounded out smaller units to relieve the starters.

4. Home-court advantage throughout the playoffs is the real win

The Celtics will walk the rust-readiness line. There’s still no better place to be than solidified as the top seed in the NBA Playoffs. The road to the title goes through Boston now, and while that feels like a small victory after last year’s home-court gaffes, any small advantage over an opponent like Denver in the Finals feels significant. Mazzulla told the Celtics to enjoy the achievement, especially considering that no other east playoff team has clinched even its postseason spot.

“We may never be in this position again, so don’t take that for granted,” he said. “It’s just a testament to the guys. We should enjoy it tonight, wake up tomorrow, then nobody cares.”

5. Derrick White strangely silent during a two-way trouncing

White scored eight points, his fewest since the Mar. 7 loss at Denver, and only took two shots in a scoreless first half. He participated in a night where Boston dished 33 assists on 50 baskets, an increasingly winning formula, while many pass-pass possessions that set up threes got him a relieving look late from Porzingis. The speed, downhill persistence and defensive aggression the Thunder play with seemed to bother him though. He slammed the ball and let it roll away after committing a fourth foul trying to rotate inside against Aaron Wiggins. A rarity that inevitably will amount to another All-Defensive season.

6. Gordon Hayward invisible

It’s amazing how long ago the Hayward era feels. He landed with the Thunder in February via trade. Still, he looked more like a buyout addition on Wednesday, scoring 0 points on 0-for-4 shooting across 18 minutes that amounted to a -28 for Oklahoma City. He fell to 38.8% from the field and received little to no reaction from the crowd he once played in front of. Hayward turned 34 last month and dealt with a long-running calf injury before Charlotte bought him out of the deal he originally signed to leave the Celtics following 2020. Now four years ago. Another former Celtic, Mike Muscala, didn’t play until garbage time and scored two points with one rebound.

7. Mark Daigneault — surprisingly hilarious

The Thunder head coach and NBA coach of the year favorite held court for nearly 10 minutes before the game to talk mostly about his local ties in Leominster. Asked to assess Mazzulla’s performance this year, he belted out perhaps better analysis on the seat the Celtics coach sits in nightly than any other national evaluator: “He’s really good. Because I grew up here, I know how you guys are. Are you from here? I know how you guys are. We used to go to Red Sox games and we’d listen to EEI after, and it was just a bloodbath.”

8. Horford efficient after Teammate of the Year nomination

Horford called his nomination for teammate of the year this morning a nice honor before leading the team in +/- (+32) and shooting 5-for-6 inside the arc. In a late-season run that’s provided for much experimentation, it looked different yet enticing to see Horford scoring out of the roll with Pritchard consistently in the win over his former team.

9. Offensive rebounding remains a differentiator

They’ve done it all year, but when the Celtics build a margin as large as 11-5 on the offensive glass over an opponent, it stands out as much as any other factor in wins. Boston’s players tipped their own misses in three times around the rim and Porzingis caught his own to kick a pass to Pritchard in the corner for three in one motion. The Celtics outscored Oklahoma City, 27-11, in second-chance points. Boston ranks 13th in OREB%, up from 27th last year.

10. Don’t rule out another meeting between these two

I wouldn’t bet on it. Something reminds me of the 2012 Thunder about this group, though. They’re as young as any other team, much of the roster hasn’t dreamt of the playoffs, yet with a likely MVP runner-up running things, it’s hard to say they aren’t in play to reach the Finals. It’s harder to say that about a team that could still land the West’s top seed. The Celtics would match up well in that case. Between their athleticism, ability to draw fouls and nonstop rim pressure, they play a different style than most teams Boston faces on any given night. More immediately, the Pacers fell to No. 7 in the east on Wednesday, putting them back in play as a potential first-round opponent — a similar opponent that constantly runs and is far more interested in matching Boston’s three-point attempts.