The Celtics escaped Milwaukee with their second straight win on Sunday after rallying from a 17-point deficit for a 112-106 victory in a chippy affair. Jayson Tatum was front and center during the rally, scoring 22 of his team-high 30 points in the second half. However, his outing got quite a bit tougher in the third quarter of that outburst after Tatum came down on the foot of Giannis Antetokounmpo following a three-point attempt.
Boston trainers escorted Tatum off the floor after the Celtics called timeout with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter but the All-Star remained in the game after the stoppage despite dealing with a sprained ankle.
“It’s cool. I was able to play through it,” Tatum told reporters in Milwaukee. “A little sore, I’ll probably be a little sore tomorrow.”
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While Tatum managed to dodge a bullet with a serious injury, he did not hold back on his disappointment with officials missing such an egregious call.
“There are certain calls you can’t miss,” Tatum told reporters in Milwaukee. “Your job is to protect the guys on the court, protect the shooter. That’s something I could have been out for six weeks or whatever. For it to be a no call, let alone they didn’t even get to review it or look at it, right?”
Tatum was seen having an animated conversation with one official shortly after the missed call and acknowledged it was hard to hold back his frustration. However, he did manage to avoid getting his fifth technical of the season after the blown call.
“I mean, coaches kind of calmed me down,” Tatum said. “It’s a tough situation. I get my fair share of techs throughout the season, rightfully so, unrightfully so. … That s*** is frustrating when all you get is a ‘Sorry we missed it.’ Your ankle is sore and you got to figure it out. I definitely was frustrated.”
Joe Mazzulla credited Tatum for his composure in the wake of the exchange.
“He didn’t let it impact it the rest of the game on either end of the floor,” Mazzulla said. “The refs did a great job, they knew they missed it. Any time you can have the relationship where they saw it and they did it and you just move on. He’s hurt an ankle before and it could have got him that time. Credit to him for handling it the right way.”
Tatum will get a day off to rest his sore ankle before the Celtics return to action on Tuesday night when they host the Hawks in NBA Cup pool play at TD Garden.
