5 topics like Jayson Tatum’s late heroism raising the Celtics to Wizards

5 topics like Jayson Tatum’s late heroism raising the Celtics to Wizards

by

COMMENT

The Boston Celtics struggled to defeat the Washington Wizards and claim their second consecutive victory on Sunday – an 111-110 thriller.

The big picture

In a familiar scene, the Celtics once again wasted a double-digit lead in the second half and gave up control to the Wizards. But, instead of doubling the stretch, Boston continued to fight. Jayson Tatum’s green basket four seconds from the end gave the Celtics a one-point lead, and Boston chased Bradley Beal in the corner and arrested him in Washington’s last attempt to claim victory.

Game star

Jayson Tatum – 31 points, 12 out of 22 shots.

Tatum looked healthier and more energetic, and his baskets in the final stretch were as strong as they appeared – he hit four strokes in the final 1:33, including a flip jump and three baskets in the paint that included the eventual winner of the game.

Boston overcame Jaylen Brown’s lack largely thanks to Tatum and Walker, whose eight assists were important, but Tatum’s heroism was particularly crucial.

What it means

The Wizards are not the best team in the NBA, but entering Sunday’s competition, they were one of the hottest – winners of seven out of the last eight. Beating such a hot team is an achievement, and the Celtics overcame two of their biggest problems – a cold stretch in the second half and an opposing superstar exploding.

The Celtics are now back at 0.500 and have a little momentum. If they manage to share two tough games against the Los Angeles Clippers and an improved Toronto Raptors team, they can stay there with a little life going into the All-Star range.

Apprenticeship

1 Here’s a look at Tatum’s approval basket.

The play itself was quite complicated, but Tatum got the best out of it – defeated Beal with a quick jump off the post and scored around a defending defender.

Tatum on the crossbar is deadly when he works with it – according to NBA statistics, he averages 1.56 points for possession in 0.6 post-game moves per game. The winner of the game may not be fully classified as post-up, but Tatum started with his back to the basket and made a skillful move to get Beal in his way.

“It’s just a sensation for the game,” said Tatum when asked about his final post-game layup. “It’s just something you feel, use your instincts, be reactive. I’m 22 and I’ve been playing basketball since I was three, so I have a lot of practice in that regard. I played many games. “

two Opposing stars and streaks of cold continue to damage the Celtics. Boston’s attack was frozen for a period between the end of the third and the beginning of the fourth period, and the Wizards took control of the game. Boston fought back thanks in large part to a stretch of brilliance from Daniel Theis, but again, the hill the Celtics were forced to climb was steep.

Digging out of that hole was encouraging, but the Celtics needed a little luck and a lot of clutch, which is not something they can count on.

“It’s something we can build on,” said Tatum. “Obviously, we made some important plays, we got some important interruptions and we just persisted and things turned in our favor. I hope that we can continue to develop this. “

3 With Jaylen Brown out, the Celtics were forced to have lineups with Kemba Walker on the ground without Brown, Tatum or Marcus Smart – formations that were a disaster last season.

This season, however, they have been a little better, despite Walker’s early struggles. Before Sunday’s game, the Celtics beat teams by 3.1 points per 100 possessions, with Walker on the ground alone (from the Boston stars) in 127 possessions. Those numbers are likely to go up a bit – Walker finished +4, posting 21 points.

“Kemba is a good ace and, with all the other guys, they get a lot of attention,” said Theis. “If we keep moving the ball, it will be very difficult for the teams to protect us. Today was my time in the third quarter. I had the photos open. I think four times in a row, they didn’t protect me at all, but also as a team, we move the ball, it’s so difficult to defend when we have Kemba, JT, JB, whoever is there, we have a lot of guys who can do it played by each other. That’s what we need. We just have to play our way of basketball. “

4 Tatum has a lot of poster slams for someone who isn’t particularly bouncy. His last was a beauty: a second-hand blow to Robin Lopez, followed by a friendly pat on the back by his longtime friend Bradley Beal.

Part of the reason for Tatum’s posters is his use – he has a lot of the ball in his hands, which means he drives a lot towards the basket. But he is also very calm and very confident, which also encourages him.

Tatum was asked if he is reconsidering an appearance at the dunk contest. He laughed.

“Nah, I mean, if you watched the last game I tried to dunk and got stuffed over the edge,” said Tatum. “So, I had to make up for it.”

5 Here is your nightly highlight from Rob Williams.

Rob can certainly jump.

Get browser alerts from Boston.com:

Enable breaking news notifications directly in your internet browser.

Turn on notifications

Great, you signed up!

Source