News update-Jayson Tatum Stayed in Game Despite Shooting Struggles vs Suns

Tatum asked to sit out entire second half of Celtics’ win over Suns. He did so in more ways than one as he struggled to shoot.

Joe Mazzulla reported that Tatum asked not to come out of the regular season break in the second half of the Celtics’ 117th game. 107 win Saturday when the Suns pulled within five points at halftime of the fourth quarter.

Tatum reversed a second-and-one stretch to end the third when Brown came off the floor and played a pickup. Luke Kornet and found Jrue Holiday for three after hitting a layup that helped the Celtics restore a nine-point lead after four games. minute offensive drought. Tatum remained aggressive after going 3-for-10 in the first half.

That dampened his effort Thursday in Denver, idle despite similarly lackluster stats, including 11-for-28 (39.3%) shooting from the field. . , just two free throw attempts, 10 rebounds, seven assists and four turnovers. Tatum walked off the floor saying he smelled it, giving the ball away early before regaining control in the fourth quarter, in part doing more of the little things than in the Nuggets’ loss. Judge felt the Nuggets’ hitting and physicality helped him out of the Suns’ deficit, while his deeper efforts returned Saturday.

“I felt like I got into a rhythm at some point,” Tatum said. . “I made a few shots, then I missed 3-4 and the game started to get competitive. I just wanted to be inside. I really don’t say that many times… it might have been the second time I’ve done it all season. It’s an emotional thing. We trust each other.”

Tatum’s problem two nights earlier wasn’t his 5-for-13 shooting, he said after the game that he had to step aside to let Jaylen Brown cook. Brown did not hesitate to highlight the real issue. Tatum struggled terribly for Denver’s defensive scheme, which pressured him and threw aggressive help behind the blitz. He turned it over five times and became an unreliable starter, and those struggles extended to other areas. Tatum had just three defensive rebounds and couldn’t hold off Aaron Gordon for the game-tying shot. He also hit a wide-open corner three for a chance to redeem himself in the final minute, trailing by two.

The criticism is the highest it has been all season after losses and late disappointments in nationally televised games. went back to ABC and didn’t press. Even against rival star Kevin Durant and idol Bradley Beal. Both Suns stars turned in stellar performances, with Durant scoring 45 points and rallying Phoenix to within 15 points before halftime. Beal played point guard outside of Devin Booker and scored 25 with four assists. Boston needed more help at the table as well. Jusuf Nurkic recently averaged 17.0 rebounds and grabbed five rebounds against the Celtics, who were without Kristaps Porzingis (hamstring).

“He asked me if he could stay and I said yes,” Mazzulla said. .

Where Tatum would normally rest to start the fourth, he joined Brown, who he actually helped out in a scorching effort, remaining a threat. Brown scored 27 points on 10-21 shooting, fueling Boston’s offense through the early struggles of Tatum and both. aggressiveness spread the Suns’ defense as they turned on weaker guards like Bol Bol and Eric Gordon. Brown passed to Payton Pritchard and Derrick White hit Tatum for a three as Phoenix went into the zone in response, but trailed by 13 when Brown ran erratically, freeing Kornet to slam Brown. Pritchard and Tatum blocked Bol and Beal from the game.

Brown and Tatum each made 3-pointers against possession fouls to extend the lead to 15 before Durant retook the lead. Tatum turned the ball over twice more and missed two shots at the basket, but made up for it with one when Durant defended in the lane and blocked. Durant responded with five straight points and Tatum missed a three. The Celtics narrowly avoided a two-point game when Durant went off and missed a three, trailing by five after Beal robbed White. Boston called a timeout and went back to attacking Beal to get Brown free throws. He missed both, and Tatum fired his next shot over Grayson Allen, allowing the Celtics to pocket Jrue Holiday for Al Horford’s all-important 3-pointer in the corner to go up 0-6.
\ nThe performance of the year. There was no way Tatum was being pushed back into the MVP conversation. It also didn’t completely erase concerns about his offensive consistency and the Celtics’ ability to avoid going through him after the offense. The relief came as Tatum comfortably endured a third straight poor finish, leaning on teammates like White, who dished out nine assists in a more difficult offensive role putting himself at risk. This is Tatum, who has begun to earn confidence as the top pick on a championship team because of the talent around him, not because of his ability to win Durant-Beal duels individually. It meant a better collective effort from Brown.

“I’ve said it before, no matter how well I play or not, I never go too low or too high,” Tatum said. “I respect that whatever people say, it’s up to people to report what we do, what we say and how we play. So I never take these things personally. Yesterday I was able to play 18 holes of golf, sunbathe, enjoy the outdoors with friends and mentally get away from it all. Today we positively recovered.”.