NEW YORK — Jayson Tatum owned up to his struggles from this Knicks series. While the Celtics blowing both Games 1 and 2 falls on the entire team, naturally, the critics also took full aim at Tatum. The All-NBA talent wasn’t good enough. He knew it, so in his words, took “full ownership” of his disappointing play.
The C’s got right back to their 3-point shooting ways in a blowout Game 3 win over the Knicks. Tatum had his fingerprints on the victory, finishing with 22 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, shooting 8-for-20 from the field and 5-of-9 on 3s. He didn’t play angry, frustrated or anything else throughout Saturday’s win, instead offering up an honest answer postgame as to how he deals with the critics and haters.
“You just understand what comes with being that guy,” Tatum said. “I live a great life, I ain’t gonna lie. I make a lot of money; I take care of my family. I’ve been able to experience a lot of things. But you also have to accept what comes with that, right? I get a lot of praise, I get a lot of credit, I get a lot of accolades. But I’m not perfect. And there’s times where I’ve needed to play better, I’ve needed to do more, and that’s what comes with being that guy. So, just understanding that.
“People don’t just criticize me. There’s a lot of people that came before me that they criticized, and there’s going to be people that come after me that they criticize. And for me, it’s just a sense of joy that I play with. Coming into a game with an angry face and mad at the world, that’s not who I am. That’s not when I play my best. So I always say, you’ve gotta be the same person when things are going great and when things aren’t going great. You can’t switch up. That’s the character of a good man.”
Of course, Tatum has heard it all when it comes to his career. There was perhaps no bigger spotlight and backlash than what came after the 2022 NBA Finals. Tatum faltered at the end of that deep playoff run to the Warriors, leading to a summer of doubts and criticism at just 24. As he pointed out, that’s the territory that comes with being the best player on the Boston Celtics, the winningest franchise in league history.
So all that criticism after Game 2, where the Celtics blew another 20-point lead, wasn’t uncharted territory. Tatum shot a combined 12-for-42 in Games 1 and 2, and after the C’s fell behind 2-0 in the series, the national pundits openly questioned him as a playoff performer. It didn’t matter that he has a ring and multiple marquee postseason games; the latest data point was the one worth condemning. So, they did.
The team effort was there Game 3 as the Celtics never allowed the Knicks to mount a serious comeback attempt. They knocked down 50% of their 3-pointers after their shooting woes, finally breaking through. The series is still a 2-1 Knicks lead, though, so there’s still plenty of work ahead. But for at least one game, the critics can’t say much after such a dominant Celtics victory with Tatum helping lead the way.
“I know who I am, I know what I’m capable of, I know what I can do and I know what is needed on each possession in order for us to win,” Tatum said. “I’m not trying to prove anything or anything like that. Today was just about making sure that we win, however that looks, whatever is needed. And our team is so talented and well put together, it can look different from night to night.”
