Jayson Tatum Struggles in Boston Celtics Game 1 Loss

The Boston Celtics dropped Game 1 at home to the New York Knicks, losing 108-105 in overtime. They led by as many as 20 points but gave up a comeback as their offense faltered down the stretch. After a hot start, Jayson Tatum finished the game with 23 points on 7-of-23 shooting. He shot 4-of-15 from three. Tatum was part of a complete offensive collapse in the second half, and in the fourth quarter, he shot 0-of-7 from the field and 0-of-5 from three. The Celtics fall behind 0-1 in the series, partly due to Jayson Tatum and the offense’s rough outing.

Jayson Tatum’s Performance

Jayson Tatum and the Celtics got out to a solid start in Game 1. In the first quarter, Tatum scored 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting, going 2-of-5 from three. His three-point shot was falling, and he got buckets in the midrange and paint as well. But in the next three quarters and overtime, he only scored 10 more points and made three more shots. Outside of the first quarter, Tatum shot 3-of-15 and 2-of-10 from three. He made back-to-back threes in the third quarter to help Boston halt a New York run, but could not maintain a consistent and efficient offense.

Many will lump Jayson Tatum’s performance with the rest of the Celtics as poor shooting luck. The team set a record for most missed three-pointers in a playoff game, missing 45 attempts and going 15-of-60. But this was not just a cold game; it was poor shot selection. Typically, when Boston shoots a bunch of threes, fans like to complain, but most of their shots are open looks generated from good offense. This game was not that.

When Jayson Tatum had the ball, his main focus was to force the defense to switch until he got a mismatch. This was the correct approach, getting defenders like Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Mitchell Robinson on Tatum. But no matter who was guarding him, he settled for difficult step-back three-pointers. Tatum is big enough to take Brunson to the basket, and fast enough to get by Towns and Robinson, but possession after possession, he took contested three-pointers that were not falling.

The Boston Celtics’ Offense

In the first round against the Magic, the Celtics had a series where they weren’t allowed to shoot as many threes. Because of this, Tatum got to the rim and was efficient from midrange when the threes weren’t there. This should have served as preparation for Boston, when the three-pointers aren’t falling, but in Game 1, they were shooting them almost exclusively. In the third quarter, when the Knicks began their comeback, the Celtics took 20 shots. Nineteen of them were threes. This is not an acceptable or efficient shot diet, no matter how good Boston is when they go in.

The Orlando series was a reminder that the Celtics don’t need to shoot 50 threes a game to win. The Magic have a tough physical defense that Boston will not see again unless they meet the Oklahoma City Thunder. So, they should still attempt to attack the paint instead of sitting on the three-point line. Work for the best shot instead of just the three-point shot. Again, the three-point volume is not an issue, but the shot selection is. Contested threes should not be Jayson Tatum’s first option when he has shown the ability to attack the paint and midrange. They will need Tatum and the offense to be more prepared and settle less.

Final Thoughts

Jayson Tatum was not the sole reason for the Celtics’ loss in Game 1. Jaylen Brown had an inefficient game, Kristaps Porzingis exited with an illness and underperformed when he did play, and the team blew a 20-point lead. But Tatum is the number one option and needs to be better. He cannot have zero field goals in the fourth quarter, settling for bad shots. He needs to be better if Boston wants to win this series.