Celtics
Tatum turned a nightmarish sport right into a memorable end.
The Celtics survived a roaring Philadelphia crowd and three quarters of nightmare basketball from Jayson Tatum in Recreation 6 on Thursday, claiming a dramatic 95-86 victory to drive Recreation 7.
Listed below are the takeaways.
1. Jayson Tatum was 4:14 away from a deeply uncomfortable summer time filled with questions on his capacity to guide a group within the clutch and possibly even his standing as a prime participant within the NBA.
Contemporary off a virtually unanimous choice to the All-NBA First Group, Tatum was 1-for-13 from the ground as time ticked away on the Celtics’ season. He couldn’t discover the vary, the Celtics’ offense was icy chilly, and the Sixers appeared like they had been on the verge of taking management.
It might need been slightly factor, however with 6:31 remaining, James Harden fouled Tatum and despatched him to the road for 2 free throws. Tatum made each. The free throws had been shortly forgotten — on the Celtics’ subsequent possession, Jaylen Brown turned the ball over and Tatum dedicated a expensive clear-path foul that gave the Sixers two pictures and the ball. However roughly two minutes later, Tatum lined up his first shot because the free throws — a 3-pointer within the nook over Joel Embiid.
He buried it. The Celtics led by one.
On the Celtics’ subsequent possession, Tatum shook off Tyrese Maxey with a nasty step-back dribble and lined up one other triple.
He buried that one too. The Celtics led by 4.
Two minutes later, Good and Tatum ran a pick-and-pop, and Tatum fired once more from three. He cashed that one out. The Celtics led by eight, and a deflated Sixers group by no means recovered. Tatum added yet one more 3-pointer for good measure in entrance of a shortly thinning Wells Fargo Enviornment crowd earlier than the ultimate buzzer sounded.
“I’m, humbly, among the best basketball gamers on the planet,” Tatum told ESPN’s Cassidy Hubbarth in his postgame interview. “Undergo struggles, undergo slumps, it’s a protracted sport. Fortunately, I obtained some nice teammates that held it down.”
2. The Celtics wouldn’t have been ready to be saved by Tatum if Marcus Good hadn’t stored them within the sport with among the best two-way postseason performances of his profession. Good completed with 22 factors on 8-for-15 taking pictures to go together with seven assists, giving the Celtics simply sufficient offense to tread water and wait for his or her star to reach.
Good’s efficiency backed up an impassioned quote he gave previous to Recreation 6.
“If you happen to’re not keen to just about get soiled, if you happen to’re not keen to bleed, if you happen to’re not keen to interrupt one thing, keen to tear one thing going laborious, you then shouldn’t be on that courtroom, as a result of that’s what it’s,” Good stated. “That’s what the playoffs are about. Hopefully you keep protected, however that’s the mentality. You’ve obtained to go, you’ve obtained to be keen to threat all of it for these video games. And that’s the mentality we’ve obtained to have.”
3. The Celtics tried a brand new beginning lineup, going again to their double massive group that dominated all through final season with Robert Williams subsequent to Al Horford. The outcomes had been glorious — Williams completed with 10 factors and 9 rebounds, and he was a team-high +18 in just below 28 minutes of enjoying time.
Importantly, placing Williams within the beginning lineup additionally gave the bench a lift with Derrick White alongside Malcolm Brogdon. White and Brogdon shot a mixed 5-for-6 within the first half from three, and whereas they cooled down within the second, they — like Good — had been important in serving to the Celtics construct a lead regardless of Tatum’s struggles.
Recreation 7 will happen on Sunday at TD Backyard.
We can have extra takeaways later this night.
Join Celtics updates🏀
Get breaking information and evaluation delivered to your inbox throughout basketball season.
Originally posted 2023-05-12 03:09:19.