A few thoughts on the Celtics while wondering how many times Paolo Banchero muttered, “Please put me back in now, Coach” and “How about now, Coach?” during the champs’ decisive third quarter Tuesday night … Allow me to make an overdue apology: It was a big mistake to prefer the Celtics play the Magic in the first round rather than the Hawks, which indeed is a nonsense take I believed during the play-in round. The series with the Magic actually went how I figured it would ― Banchero and Franz Wagner would give the Celtics some fits, but the champs would overcome any frustrations and issues with Orlando’s physicality to win the series in five. But I underestimated just how physical the Magic would be, and wayyy overestimated the possible impact Trae Young’s shooting and playmaking could have on a series had the opponent been the Hawks. I’m probably in the minority on this — and maybe I’m wrong again — but I don’t think there was any particular value gained or lesson learned in facing a tough team such as Orlando in the first round, either. I have unyielding trust these days in the Celtics’ ability to adjust to an opponent, keep their composure, and do what they need to do to win games and series. This isn’t 2022 or ’23 anymore; the Celtics grew up last spring and overcame everything they needed to overcome. The Magic were a worthy opponent, and they made the Celtics think and work, but that’s not a test that they need to pass, or even take, at this point. I’d have preferred the path of least resistance in the first round, and the Magic resisted aggressively. No need to accumulate so many bruises as the start of the grueling playoff journey. His weird and dwindling flock of detractors might claim it’s subjective to declare that Jayson Tatum’s performance in Game 5 — 35 points on 10-of-16 shooting, 10 assists, 8 rebounds, 11 for 11 from line, 4 for 5 from three — was sensational by any standard, including the stratospheric one set by Larry Bird from 1984-86. I don’t think it’s subjective personally, because it’s as obvious as Kristaps Porzingis’s height. But objectively, data backs up the belief. By basketball-reference.com‘s GameScore metric, Tatum’s performance was the third-best in his 117 career playoff games. His GameScore was 35.4, trailing only a 46.0 for his 51-point, 13-rebound performance against the 76ers in Game 7 of the 2023 Eastern Conference semifinals, and a 41.8 for his 50-point, 7-assist effort versus the Nets in Game 3 of their first-round series in 2021. This one might sting anyone who considers comparison to Bird to be borderline blasphemous, but Tatum’s 35.4 GameScore is higher than all but two of Larry’s 164 playoff performances. His top two: a 39.0 for his 40-point, 11-rebound, 7-assist masterpiece in Game 1 of the 1987 Eastern Conference semifinals against the Bucks, and a 36.3 for his 42-point, 10-rebound, 6-assist output in Game 2 of the 1985 conference semifinals against the Pistons. Now, praising Tatum is not an insult to Larry Legend. But it’s a heck of a way to put into context how well he played Tuesday night. It was a superstar performance in full, and one more hint that he might just be on an unstoppable mission this postseason. Membership in the Jaylen Brown Appreciation Society swelled when he won the Eastern Conference finals and NBA Finals Most Valuable Player awards during the championship run last season. His grace under pressure was a tribute to his talent, but more so his mental toughness, considering the agonizing ending to the 2023 postseason, when he turned the ball over eight times in the crushing Game 7 defeat against the Heat. My admiration for Brown — on and off the court — doesn’t waver, but I will acknowledge sporadic frustration when he gets in the habit of dribbling with his kneecaps through traffic, or teeing up two or three too many 3-point shots in a given quarter. Those are small, tolerable quirks at this point, though. Brown was excellent in his own right in Game 5 (23 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and a primary energy-shifter with his relentless defense in the third quarter), and that’s what we’ve come to expect from him in big moments. Make no mistake, the biggest development for the Celtics in the first round was the confirmation that Brown’s bothersome knee isn’t preventing him, at least now, from being at his all-around best. We’ll play to the buzzer here with a quick thought on the Celtics’ two elder statesmen. Al Horford is 38 years old, but he’s somehow still playing with the energy of a 28-year-old. It’s amusing how slights and disrespectful opponents still seem to give him a you-won’t-like-me-when-I’m-angry superpower. Brian Scalabrine mentioned on NBC Sports Boston’s broadcast that Horford looks more spry than he did last season. I don’t know about that, but he hasn’t aged a bit year-over-year, and that’s pretty remarkable in itself. As for the Celtics’ other super-veteran, 34-year-old Jrue Holiday, hopefully the break until the conference semifinals kick off Monday gives him enough time for his hamstring to heal. Holiday missed the last three games against the Magic after playing his best basketball of the season in the first two. A positive report on the essential Holiday — the ultimate win-in-the-margins player, and the calm amid the chaos — in the next few days would be more than welcome.