The Boston Celtics claw themselves back up through Jayson Tatum's late-game heroics in Game Six which gets praised by Coach Joe Mazzulla. However, game six was not a game where praise was given to the All-NBA first-team member throughout. Rather, fans of the Boston squad and even the media bombarded Tatum for his horrendous first-half performance. It went as far as notable players like Eddie House and Brian Scalabrine comparing him to other stars who had a zero out of ten first-half shooting night. Michael Jordan and James Harden were the only company Jayson Tatum had on that list.
"The standard that is set for him to where if he's not scoring, he's not playing good basketball is wrong."
Joe Mazzulla on Jayson Tatum impacting the Celtics winning on a tough shooting night pic.twitter.com/DQbMbkTYOD
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) May 12, 2023
Unlike most of them, Celtics Head Coach Joe Mazzulla stood up for his star player. In a post-game interview with CBS, Mazzulla said “The standard that is set for him to where if he's not scoring, he's not playing good basketball is wrong.” He further stresses that Tatum's game is more than just the shots he took in the earlier periods. Aspects of the game such as his ‘defensive intensity', communication with teammates, and level of poise that he brings were some that he praised.
The flack comes from Tatum only totaling three points in 1 of 13 field goal shooting. Also, he did not hit a single shot from three despite attempting six of them. Tables would turn for Jayson Tatum as he would score 16 points on 50% field goal shooting. He would also fix his three-point slump by burying four out of five shots that he took.
Jayson Tatum needs to carry that firepower in the fourth quarter. The Boston Celtics battle it out in Game Seven back home in TD Garden.
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