ORLANDO — Jayson Tatum is battling through a painful bone bruise in his right wrist but the ailment has not slowed him down in two games since his return. The All-Star erupted for 37 points in Game 4 to help the Celtics take a commanding 3-1 lead over the Magic in their first round series.
Tatum has embraced Orlando’s physicality since his Game 2 absence, taking advantage of Magic’s desire to play him straight up by getting to the free throw line. He’s gone to the free throw line 26 times in the last two games, including a series-high 14 in Game 4.
“Just putting the pressure on,” Tatum said. “Playoffs presents a lot of different things. Each game is different, and I say it all the time. Sometimes you’ve just got to beat your matchup. Sometimes you’ve just got to be able to make a play for you or somebody else. And I think we did that pretty well tonight.”
It wasn’t the prettiest shooting night for Tatum, hitting just 10 of his 25 field goal attempts but his production was critical down the stretch as the visitors broke open a 91-91 tie with a 16-7 run to clinch the victory. Tatum scored nine of those points in the final four minutes despite taking a couple of hard hits to his wrists on Magic fouls.
“Year after year,” Tatum said. “Just getting older, having more experience. Understanding the moment being in these moments plenty of times. Enjoying being in those moments. Not necessarily like take over the game, but being in a position where to just make a play. I say it all the time.
“For myself or a teammate, you just want to be in a position where you’re involved and you’ve got a part of the action or whatever when the game’s on the line. It was 91-91 with four minutes left, a timeout, I was excited for that moment because I knew we was going to figure out and make plays. It’s not just me. Everybody made plays. So we showed just our competitive spirit. That was fun.”
Tatum also tried to downplay the severe bone bruise he’s been battling through to help put Boston back in control for the series.
“It’s whatever. I know what I’m dealing with,” Tatum said. “My team knows how serious is, but it’s that time of year. We’re all sacrificing our bodies and doing through things. It’s the playoffs. I doubt anybody feels 100%, but you step on that floor, do what you can, give it your all. It’s all about trying to figure out how to win.”
Tatum has also used his wrist injury to debut a new celebration the past two games, which he credited rookie Baylor Scheierman for after the Game 4 win.
“Shoutout to the rook, man, Baylor,” Tatum said. “He came up with the celebration when I hit a three. I think people are taking notice, and it’s a new thing for now.”
The Celtics will look to close out the series back in Boston on Tuesday night to avoid a trip back to Orlando. Tatum is confident he’ll be able to lean on his experience to earn some pivotal rest for Boston ahead of a likely second round showdown with the Knicks.
“Just understanding it’s my eighth year in the playoffs,” Tatum said. “I’ve played 115 some odd playoff games so I’ve been here before, I’ve been in these moments. Just stay composed and don’t get distracted by outside things or whatever. Just try to make the right read, focus on the next play, stay level-headed and, just do what you can, to help your team be in a position to get a win.”
