NEW YORK -- Bostons backcourt was too good for a Brooklyn one still missing Jeremy Lin.Isaiah Thomas scored 23 points, Avery Bradley had 22 and the Celtics beat the Nets 111-92 on Wednesday night.Al Horford added 17 points for the Celtics in their third straight victory. Jae Crowder had 15.Boston imp

NEW YORK -- Bostons backcourt was too good for a Brooklyn one still missing Jeremy Lin.Isaiah Thomas scored 23 points, Avery Bradley had 22 and the Celtics beat the Nets 111-92 on Wednesday night.Al Horford added 17 points for the Celtics in their third straight victory. Jae Crowder had 15.Boston improved to 5-1 when Horford is in the lineup.Al can score the ball, Bradley said. But its all the little things that he does and how he gets the ball moving, its so contagious. During the timeouts hes telling guys, `We need to move the ball. Hes a leader, speaks up and he really helps our team with that because sometimes the ball sticks and for Al to step up and say something and us moving the ball and it start with him, that means a lot.Sean Kilpatrick scored 23 points for the Nets, who have lost five in a row. Trevor Booker had 18 points and 12 rebounds, and Bojan Bogdanovic added 14 points.Boston raced to an 11-2 lead and was ahead 30-16 after one quarter, but the Nets answered with a 21-6 run and 12 points from Bogdanovic in the second quarter.The Nets came all the way back to tie it at 60 in the third, but the Celtics then went on a 19-6 run to regain control.For the most part, I feel like we were sharing the ball tonight and getting open shots for our teammates and thats how we pulled away in the first quarter and thats how we pulled away at the end of the game, Bradley said.Third-quarter struggles have become a theme for the Nets thus far.I dont know if our mindset collectively is right, center Brook Lopez said. I mean, I guess its not. We just need to find a way to all be on the same page and come out the way weve been coming out most games, and again just sustaining that effort and energy. Thats the bottom line.Kilpatrick scored 13 points in the fourth, but it wasnt enough for Brooklyn.TIP-INSCeltics: Guard Marcus Smart has made an effort to add the floater to his game. Hes worked on it quite a bit, coach Brad Stevens said. It was a major focus going into his second year and he got better at it and then hes continued that focus now going into his third year. The best part about a floater is its got a chance of going in, but it also leads to a shot block attempt so youve got a chance to get a rebound. ... Demetrius Jackson and Jordan Mickey were inactive.Nets: Lopez is now the only player in the league with 20 or more 3-pointers and blocks. ... Booker has matched his single-season career high with his fifth double-double of the season. ... Chris McCullough became the fourth player in history to appear in an NBA game and a D-League game in the same day. ... Lin (strained left hamstring) and Caris LeVert (left foot rehab) were inactive.LIN UPDATECoach Kenny Atkinson said there was no specific time frame for Lins return after he missed his ninth straight game.Hes just progressing as scheduled, Atkinson said. Hes anxious to play. Were anxious to get him back, but we also understand the big picture long-term and, definitely, I think in these situations I know collectively were airing on the side of being cautious and smart.UP NEXTCeltics: Host San Antonio on Friday in an afternoon start.Nets: Visit Indiana on Friday. The Nets beat the Pacers last month for their first victory under Atkinson. Stan Brock Jersey . -- If this was Aaron Gordons final home game at Arizona, and it almost certainly was, then he went out in style. Erik McCoy Jersey . -- Five former Kansas City Chiefs players who were on the team between 1987 and 1993 filed a lawsuit Tuesday claiming the team hid and even lied about the risks of head injuries during that time period when there was no collective bargaining agreement in place in the NFL. http://www.customsaintsjersey.com/custom-justin-hardee-jersey-large-2712e.html .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. Patrick Robinson Jersey .com) - The game was all punts and field goals before Kodi Whitfields catch. Jim Wilks Jersey . They hope to persuade the other team owners and commissioner Roger Goodell to put pressure on Redskins owner Daniel Snyder to drop the nickname they find offensive. "Given the way the meeting transpired," Ray Halbritter, an Oneida representative and leader of the "Change the Mascot Campaign," said Wednesday, "it became somewhat evident they were defending the continued use of the name. WALTHAM, Mass. -- Bostons Isaiah Thomas is feeling like a new man. A taller man.Im now listed at 6-1, the 5-foot-9 point guard joked when he sat down at Celtics media day on Monday. I grew a couple of inches this summer.While Thomas was speaking in jest, theres nothing at all fake about his excitement entering this season.The Celtics went into this past offseason focused on attracting the kind of star power to their roster that would help them move into the contender ranks of the Eastern Conference.They missed on Kevin Durant, but added veteran All-Star forward Al Horford to a young core that already includes Thomas -- a first time All-Star himself last season -- Avery Bradley, Jae Crowder and Marcus Smart.Its given coach Brad Stevens a lot to work with entering training camp as he tries to help Boston advance past the first round of the playoffs for first time since 2012.Were not asking Al to be any more than him, Stevens said. Hes a good fit for how we play on offense, hes good fit for how we play on defense...hes a guy that guys can follow by example. Its unfair to ask Al to be anything more than who he is.Who the Celtics have been the past two seasons is one of the surprise teams in the East. They improved from 25 wins in Stevens first season in 2013-14 to 40 and 48 wins the past two seasons, which both ended in playoff berths.Boston pushed the Atlanta Hawks to six games last season despite losing Bradley to a hamstring injury in Game 1 against the Hawks, seeing big man Kelly Olynyk aggravate a shoulder injury in the same game, and watching Crowder struggle throughout the series because of an ankle issue.Having a promising year derailed by that kind of bad luck has stuck with Thomas.All season thats all I thought about, Thomas said. Losing that series left a bad taste in all of our mouths. We want to get past that first round. I do, I know that. I want to win a playoff series. I want to go farther; we have a good enough team to make that happen.Gone are sixth man Evan Turner and Jared Sullinger, who both left in free agency. But the optimism and excitement surrounding Horford was palpable Tuesday. Not only for his ability to defend and be a big man who can stretch the floor, but for his anxiousness to see the Celtics return to a cchampionship contender.ddddddddddddis four-year, $113 million deal certainly carries with it some weighty burdens, but he said he isnt feeling any pressure because of it.In his very first trip to the Garden as a rookie in 2007, Horford recalled being mystified by Celtics championship banners hanging from the rafters.Youre very aware, Horford said. I couldnt stop looking at the banners up top. Maybe some guys feel differently, but I couldnt stop looking at them. Its something thats powerful. It leaves an impression on you.Team president Danny Ainge said he thinks Horford is joining a team that already has garnered the attention of other teams around the NBA.Were not going to be able to sneak up on anybody, Ainge said. I think that the team has earned a great deal of respect around the league the way they played last year, and the last couple of years. Thats a good thing. Thats progress. Thats where we want to be. We want our expectations to be higher. And learning to live up to those expectations is part of the grind.This month will be about integrating Horford into that foundation.Its a challenge Horford says hes eager to embrace.I have a good idea of the history of the Celtics, and of the passion of the people here. I know that its special, and thats part of the reason that Im here, he said. I want to be a part of that.Game notes Olynyk, who had arthroscopic surgery on his shoulder in May, is due to have his five-month evaluation on Oct. 15. But he has been cleared to do noncontact drills in the interim. Hopefully in the next three or four weeks, I can get out there and make something happen, Olynyk said. I just gotta make sure its strong enough to take the hit. ...Stevens said that he has had discussions with players and other team officials regarding the protest and demonstrations that have taken place during the national anthem in the NFL and other sports. Its been great to engage in those discussions. Its been really fun for me to hear about how excited our guys are about using their platforms to promote good things, Stevens said.---Follow Kyle Hightower on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/khightower ' ' '