The Celtics ended their trying “road trip” with a big victory in Sacramento, and after several mixed meetings, Jayson Tatum had saved the best for last: 36 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists on 14 of 25 shots. It’s his 39th game of the season with 30 or more points, and he ties Larry Bird’s franchise record. It was he, in the first quarter, who allowed the Celtics to stay in touch with the Kings.
“He just did a great job of hitting the door” points out Joe Mazzulla. “I thought he and Jaylen did a really good job of making decisions to control the game. »
In fact, Tatum simply “played” with the Kings’ defense, able to find his shots where he wanted. A real offensive “clinic” for three quarters, with the aggressiveness to get shots, but also the patience to conclude the very good collective game of Boston. It’s a benchmark game for the Celtics, and Tatum looked so effortless in the flow of the game.
Forget the two losses in Houston and Utah
“We played the way we were supposed to, and it started with me” he explained at a press conference. “We wanted to finish this “road trip” strong because we felt like we had dropped two matches. It was the last away game, and it was very important to win it. »
In the second half, we also saw him defend hard to help on Domantas Sabonis, and hinder De’Aaron Fox’s ball recovery, and it was the Kings’ whole game that seized up.
“We had to ensure the defensive withdrawal and help” he continues. “We obviously know that Fox is probably the fastest player in the NBA with the ball in hand, and they dominate you with their fast game. We therefore had to be united in defense, to show ourselves, and that was essential tonight. »
| Jayson Tatum | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2017-18 | BOS | 80 | 31 | 47.5 | 43.4 | 82.6 | 0.6 | 4.4 | 5.0 | 1.6 | 2.1 | 1.0 | 1.4 | 0.7 | 13.9 |
| 2018-19 | BOS | 79 | 31 | 45.0 | 37.3 | 85.5 | 0.9 | 5.2 | 6.0 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 15.7 |
| 2019-20 | BOS | 66 | 34 | 45.0 | 40.3 | 81.2 | 1.0 | 6.0 | 7.0 | 3.0 | 2.1 | 1.4 | 2.4 | 0.9 | 23.4 |
| 2020-21 | BOS | 64 | 36 | 45.9 | 38.6 | 86.8 | 0.8 | 6.6 | 7.4 | 4.3 | 1.9 | 1.2 | 2.7 | 0.5 | 26.4 |
| 2021-22 | BOS | 76 | 36 | 45.3 | 35.3 | 85.3 | 1.1 | 6.9 | 8.0 | 4.4 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 2.9 | 0.6 | 26.9 |
| 2022-23 | BOS | 67 | 37 | 45.7 | 34.5 | 85.9 | 1.1 | 7.8 | 8.9 | 4.7 | 2.2 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 0.8 | 30.0 |
| Total | 432 | 34 | 45.6 | 37.5 | 84.8 | 0.9 | 6.1 | 7.0 | 3.3 | 2.1 | 1.1 | 2.3 | 0.7 | 22.3 | |
