BOSTON — Throughout a slide that’s extended for nearly two weeks, the Celtics have given off a sense of optimism. After torching the NBA for the first six weeks of season, there seemed to be confidence that this was just a rough patch in a long season that has championship aspirations.
That may still be the case. But maybe Wednesday night represented the wake-up call they finally needed.
If back-to-back home losses to the upstart Magic weren’t enough, this should be. The Celtics had an extra day off and their first home practice in more than a month to focus on correcting their extended issues. Their star Jayson Tatum had a fresh reset. But still, the Celtics came out flat. After their worst half of the season, the Celtics stormed back with a furious second-half rally, but it fell short with a 117-112 loss to the Pacers at TD Garden.
