4 takeaways as Celtics blow out Hornets in home preseason finale

BOSTON — The Celtics blew out the Hornets 114-93 on Wednesday at TD Garden for their third straight win of the preseason. The victory was a relatively comfortable effort for the C’s as they played their starters and continued tinkering with their lineups.

It was all Boston to open the game, flexing its defense as the Hornets racked up turnovers. The Hornets made it interesting in the second half, but the C’s pulled away. Former Celtics forward Grant Williams and Rookie of the Year finalist Kon Knueppel were both out for Charlotte with their respective hamstring injuries.

Notably, C’s guard Devin Carter missed his second straight game due to an illness. That’s a tough blow as he’s looking to make the team and is on an Exhibit 10 contract. Carter had a stellar first game with the C’s but he has seemingly been limited since then.

Jayson Tatum finished with 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists in 29 minutes, continuing to look great in the preseason. Derrick White added 17 points, three rebounds and four steals. Brandon Miller had 16 points and five rebounds for the Hornets.

The Celtics wrap up their four-game preseason slate next, rematching the Sixers at 7 p.m. Friday in Philadelphia. Here are four takeaways from Boston’s win over Charlotte:

Starting lineup: The Celtics went with the same starting lineup for the second straight game at full strength, perhaps offering a glimpse into what it could look like. The five-man group featured Tatum, White, Jordan Walsh, Mitchell Robinson and Paul George. Of course, that could change once the regular season starts. Walsh’s spot especially could be a rotating piece, similar to what it was last year. But it’s about what was expected from the starting group going into the season.

Still stellar: Tatum played at a high level in the limited minutes he saw last season, but it was still a question mark on how he’d look after the offseason. No issues thus far in Tatum’s two preseason games. The process has been sound, plus the playmaking he brings opens up the floor nicely. He’s also looked more like himself from a physicality standpoint as he gets back to the first-team All-NBA talent he was consistently. All signs have been positive in Tatum’s first bits of game action for the 2026-27 season.

Big Country: Robinson made his presence known immediately Wednesday, plus his chemistry with Tatum continues to smooth out. After Tatum and Robinson were off on alley-oops last Sunday, that wasn’t the case against the Hornets. They converted on a few Tatum-to-Robinson looks that got the Garden crowd buzzing. Robinson was also a beast on the boards — like he often is — as his physicality is noticeable on any rebounding opportunity. The big man finished with 12 points and seven rebounds on 5-for-5 shooting in his 17 minutes Wednesday. As a bonus, he also nailed both free throws.

Preseason finale: The Celtics fly to Philadelphia for their final exhibition game, but it remains to be seen what each team will look like at tipoff. Boston rested its starters in its road game against Cleveland. On the other side, the Sixers rested most of their guys against the Celtics in Boston. But they haven’t played a preseason game since then, so they could feature their main guys — including Jaylen Brown — as one final tune-up. So that game could have a fun subplot depending on Philadelphia’s lineup.

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