Boston Celtics Jayson Tatum goes from ‘rushing’ to calmly carrying games: ‘Confidence has a lot to do with it’

https://www.masslive.com/celtics/2020/02/boston-celtics-jayson-tatum-goes-from-rushing-to-calmly-carrying-games-confidence-has-a-lot-to-do-with-it.html




Boston Celtics Jayson Tatum goes from ‘rushing’ to calmly carrying games: ‘Confidence has a lot to do with it’




Posted Feb 06, 2020

Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) drives to the basket against the Orlando Magic during the second quarter of an NBA basketball game in Boston, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)AP




By John Karalis | JKaralis@masslive.com




BOSTON - Things were slipping away from the Boston Celtics.

Michael Carter-Williams, of all people, banked in a 3-pointer to cut the Celtics lead to just 3. Boston, without Kemba Walker, Marcus Smart, and Daniel Theis, had been struggling to pull away from the Orlando Magic for the entire second half. Ridiculous bank shots in these situations always seem to be the harbinger of doom.

Except Jayson Tatum wasn’t going to let that happen.


The Celtics third-year star scored 10-straight Celtics points in all sorts of ways. He hit free throws, 3-pointers, step-back midrange jumpers. He dipped into his bag and he gave the Celtics some breathing room. The capper to Boston’s run was a Tatum assist, after stealing the ball on the defensive end, for a loud Jaylen Brown dunk.

The Celtics won this game largely on the backs of their three remaining stars. Tatum, Brown, and Gordon Hayward scored 74 of Boston’s 116 points, and each took turns carrying the team for stretches of the game.

“Unfortunately we’ve been in this position quite a bit this season," Tatum said. "Naturally when guys are out, everybody’s got to step up and do more on both ends of the floor.”

More often, it’s Tatum who is finding those ways to step up. Since the calendar turned to 2020, he’s hitting better than 54 percent of his fourth quarter shots. Over his last three games this month, he’s averaging nearly 8 points per fourth quarter, hitting nearly two of three 3-pointers. He’s starting to take over games more often.


“Confidence has a lot to do with it," he said. "Opportunity. And just trying to get better. Just trying to get better in all aspects of my game. Each year, each summer, just trying to be a better version of myself than I was last year.”

The growing opportunity comes with a different team. Kyrie Irving wanted to dominate fourth quarters, and he certainly was capable of doing so. But in the process, he often reduced his teammates to spectators. Now, with Kemba Walker, the attitude is different.

“They are two special players,” Walker told ESPN’s Jackie MacMullan when asked about Tatum and Brown. "This is their team. I love watching them when they are in a groove together.”

This is their team

Opportunity came right away for both, and Brown grabbed it by the horns. He has certainly been the more consistent of the two this season. Tatum, though, has figured out a few things, erasing some of the struggles from the opening months of the season.


“I think some things have slowed down a little bit, maybe where I was rushing a little bit at the beginning of the season,” Tatum said. “Especially missing a lot of easy ones in the paint. Slowing down for me, it’s just all about reading the defense. Whatever they give me, each possession is different.”

Slowly, things are starting to settle down for this team. Their strength is always going to be moving the ball, putting pressure on defenses, and letting the ball find the right person on the floor. That’s just how good offensive basketball is played.

But sometimes things go wrong. Sometimes the other team prevents that from happening. Sometimes it’s just plain ol’ bad luck and injuries that prevent it. In those situations. When that happens, the best teams have someone they can look to to bail them out.

Boston has a few guys who can do it. Walker, Brown, and Hayward have all had their takeover moments. Tatum, though, seems to be inching his way to the front of the line. That’s not to say that he’s quite there yet, and he’s still young enough to be prone to extended lapses, but when he’s got it going, you can see it.


Maybe the best sign of how far he’s come isn’t the All-Star nod, but the way he’s attacked by other players. Eventually, when players get good enough, they get targets on their backs.

Orlando’s Aaron Gordon came at Tatum that way in this game, and Tatum came out on top.

“It’s fun. Just competing night in and night out,” Tatum said. “Aaron is a really, really good player. Really talented. So every night, different team, different guys and just going out there and competing. I love it.”



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