Celtics show they are no joke: 3 golden nuggets who shined vs Denver

Win baby, just win!  The Boston Celtics made it 5 wins in a row with a 131-112 victory over Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets Friday night at TD Garden.

In a battle of two of the hottest teams in the league, it was the Celtics who came out hot jumping out to a quick first quarter lead that they never relinquished.

Led by Jason Tatum and his game-high 34 points and Jaylen Brown who contributed with 25 points, the hometown team continued their offensive mastery in taking care of one of the top teams in the West as their star duo of Tatum and Brown got the best of Nuggets duo Jokic and Jamal Murray.

Boston Celtics continue to run through teams with their depth

As the Celtics outlasted a couple of Nuggets runs in this game, what set them apart was their role players and bench play.  With Malcolm Brogdon sitting this game out, Joe Mazzula’s team needed a spark off the bench, and they got that in Payton Pritchard.  The third-year guard who has been buried near the end of the bench got his chance to shine and oh did he shine.  Look at this pure hustle:

Pritchard finished the game with 11 points and may have earned himself some more minutes.

"“I’ve said it to him, I’ve said it to others.  No matter what situation he’s in when his name gets called, I trust he’s gonna be ready to play, I trust he’s gonna know the game plan, I trust he’s gonna have a great mindset,” Mazzulla said, via Masslive.com.  “And so, it’s a compliment to the locker room that the guys like each other, and they keep each other engaged, and it’s a real compliment to him that regardless of the circumstances he’s going to execute.”"

It really says a lot about the depth the Boston Celtics have this season.  While Al Horford also did his thing in this game going hot from beyond the stripe, Grant Williams, Derrick White, Sam Hauser and Luke Kornet continue to contribute whenever their names are called.  Along with Marcus Smart, the supporting cast take a lot of pressure off Tatum and Brown when it comes to scoring which makes them better star players.

Speaking of starts of this victory over Denver, here are 3 golden nuggets who helped the Celtics ride home with their 5th consecutive victory.