Everything was going great for Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics as they headed toward a rematch of the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors. Tatum was being hailed as the frontrunner for MVP, while the Celtics were regarded as the clear favorites for the title.
They were also coming off a dominant 128-95 win over the Phoenix Suns, and the game wasn’t even that close, which tells how lopsided it was. That win over Phoenix also made it 8 wins in their last 9, and they looked to steamroll the Warriors here, but the script got flipped. Golden State blew them out 123-107 as Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson both had 30-point games. Tatum, meanwhile, struggled as he put in an abysmal performance, and after the game, Kendrick Perkins blasted him and Celtics interim head coach Joe Mazzulla.
.@KendrickPerkins did not hold back on the Celtics and Jayson Tatum after their loss to Golden State pic.twitter.com/Yms11DFXhj
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) December 11, 2022
“This is the first time that I have been frustrated with the Celtics for real and it starts with Joe Mazzulla. I don’t even like to point the finger but his gameplan all across the board was horrible. I didn’t understand the drop coverage, I didn’t understand all the unders on Steph and Klay in the pick and rolls, I didn’t get that one bit… This team went to the Finals so we gotta see those in-game adjustments. We got to see how his coaching strategies gonna be when the postseason come.”
“Jaylen Brown showed up in great fashion. Jayson Tatum again, we can harp on his offense but we also can harp that he’s 6’10, stupid athletic and that sometimes you gotta get in the trenches and muck it up a little bit. When we see Giannis Antetokounmpo and he begins to struggle offensively, guess what he do? He goes to the offensive glass, he starts jumping in the passing lanes, he go out there and have 15 to 20 boards with 4 or 5 blocks. It is different ways to step up to the plate to have effect on the game to get wins. Jayson Tatum looked spooked and he talked about he lost sleep after the Finals, he definitely about to lose sleep until he see Golden State again.”
This reaction to one bad game might be a bit over the top, but Perkins is right when he talks about how Giannis Antetokounmpo finds different ways to impact the game. Tatum needs to do the same, as he has all the tools at his disposal to be a big factor, even when the shots aren’t falling.
The Celtics Should Be Fine Moving Forward
This defeat is undoubtedly very disappointing, but the Celtics should be fine. They have shown all season how good they are and once Robert Williams III comes back, expect them to get significantly better.
They won’t have to wait too long for a chance at revenge, as these sides will meet in Boston on the 19th of January. The Celtics will be hungrier than ever to get that win, and you better believe that their fans will be out in full force.
We sincerely appreciate and respect you as a reader of our site. It would help us a lot if you follow us on Google News because of the latest update.
Thanks for following us. We really appreciate your support.
