Following a devastating loss to the New York Knicks in Game 2, Jayson Tatum blamed himself for the current trajectory of the series. According to Tatum, he has not been playing up to his standards, and the fault is his own that the Boston Celtics are currently in a two-game hole.
“I take full ownership for the way that I’ve played in this series,” said Tatum, via Justin Turpin. “Can’t sugar coat anything. I need to be better. And I expect to be a lot better.”
After winning the championship in 2024, the Celtics finally proved themselves as a championship team, and Tatum was crowned as one of the NBA’s elite. With averages of 26.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 6.0 assists per game in the regular season, Tatum was instrumental in the Celtics’ finishing second in the East at 61-21.
After beating the Orlando Magic in the first round, the Cs were favored to beat the Knicks in round two, but the series has not gone according to plan. In back-to-back games, the Celtics have blown 20-point leads, marking a historic collapse for the defending champions.
While the series is far from over, the Knicks are up 2-0 with potentially three more games at Madison Square Garden. Jalen Brunson has been unstoppable in the clutch, hitting shot after shot to push the Celtics to their limit. Meanwhile, in the paint, bigs like Mitchell Robinson have made the area a nightmare to score, forcing Boston to shoot frequently from beyond the arc.
There are many things to blame for the Celtics’ collapse, but Jayson Tatum’s play has been one of their biggest problems. With averages of 18.0 points, 15.0 rebounds, and 5.5 assists on 12-42 shooting, Tatum has struggled to find a rhythm, and it’s been a major detriment to his team.
The worst part for Tatum is that he’s been invisible in the clutch, with 1-12 shooting (0-for-7 from 3-point range) in the closing minutes of games one and two. As a shell of himself on the floor, it’s no wonder the Celtics have struggled, and this will be a short series if he doesn’t start to play up to his usual standards.
The penalty for failure in this series could mean drastic roster changes, starting with the star duo themselves. After so many years together, Tatum and Brown should be trending up, not down, and the front office could split them up to avoid any further decline.
With so much at stake, and the NBA’s highest payroll, failure is not an option for this Celtics team, and they must do whatever it takes to even up the series against New York. The key to victory rests in the hands of Jayson Tatum, who will be fighting to keep his team together in Game 3. If he can correct his mistakes and become the player that the Celtics need him to be, they can return to their previous state as the best team in the East. For now, however, Tatum is taking it one game at a time as he looks to step up and avoid elimination in the second round.
