The Boston Celtics got some revenge on the Denver Nuggets on Friday night.
After falling to the Nuggets 96-92 during last month's West-Coast road trip, the C's pulled off a 108-95 win in which they dominated on both ends of the floor from start to finish. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown led the charge with 26 and 21 points respectively.
Here are three instant overreactions from the C's victory, which brings them to 16-5 on the year:
1. This was the Celtics' best all-around performance so far.
Verdict: Not an overreaction
The C's didn't just beat one of the best defensive teams in the league, they made it look easy. Boston outscored Denver in the first three quarters and shot 53.7 percent from the floor (37.1 percent from 3).
Perhaps even more impressive was their defensive effort. Nikola Jokic (30 points) was the only real scoring threat the Nuggets had to offer, and even he looked out of sorts at times throughout the contest.
Denver shot 41.5 percent from the field and an abysmal 16.7 percent from beyond the arc.
2. C's have solved their issues defending the 3.
Verdict: Overreaction
Boston Celtics
OK, so I mentioned the tremendous job done by the Celtics defending the 3-ball in this game. I'm just skeptical of their ability to make it a trend.
Teams have rained 3s on Boston all season (and we still haven't forgotten about Buddy Hield's two ridiculous performances), so while Friday night's game was encouraging, we'll have to see whether it's an anomaly or a real sign the 3-point defense has turned a corner.
3. Enes Kanter should get a boost in playing time.
Verdict: Not an overreaction
Kanter's defense obviously leaves plenty to be desired, but he provided a spark off the bench vs. the Nuggets in the first quarter. That's particularly important considering the number of slow starts the Celtics have had so far this season.
Kanter finished with 8 points (all in the first), 4 rebounds and 3 assists in 18 minutes.
Don't miss NBC Sports Boston's coverage of Celtics-Cavaliers, which tips off Monday at 7 p.m. with Celtics Pregame Live, and then Tommy & Mike have the call at 7:30 p.m. You can also stream the game on the MyTeams App.