The Boston Celtics lost a critical Game 4 to the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on Monday night, but they may have lost something even more important in the fourth quarter of the contest.
Celtics star Jayson Tatum went down late in the final period with a right ankle injury, writhing in obvious pain after a Celtics’ turnover that led to a breakout dunk for the Knicks in transition. Team doctors helped Tatum back to the locker room, and he did not return to action.
Boston was already trailing when Tatum went down, despite the forward’s stellar performance to that point that included 42 points, eight rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocks. The Celtics ended up losing the contest by a score of 121-113 and now stand on the brink of elimination, trailing 3-1 with the series headed back to Boston for Game 5 on Wednesday.
While it would be pure speculation at this juncture to predict whether Tatum will be ready to go 48 hours from now, as his team attempts to repeat as back-to-back NBA champions, a serious ankle sprain will render him unlikely to play considering how fast of a turnaround the team faces from Game 4 to Game 5.
Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla offered an update on Tatum’s injury status during his postgame press conference Monday night.
“He’s with the doctors now…We’ll get the MRI tomorrow and see what it is”
–– Mazzulla on Tatum
“He’s with the doctors now,” Mazzulla said. “We’ll get the MRI tomorrow and see what it is.”
Celtics Shot Better From 3-Point Line in New York, Still Dropped Game 4, Fell Into 3-1 Series Deficit
Boston’s first two losses in the series, both of which came on the team’s home floor, were characterized in part by poor shooting from behind the 3-point arc.
The Celtics faced considerable criticism from analysts across the country for continuing to fire up long-range shots, despite several opportunities to drive the ball to the basket and get easier, higher-percentage 2-point buckets and/or get fouled and head to the free throw line over the initial two matchups.
Boston went 25-of-100 from deep across the first two games, and the team’s 75 misses from behind the 3-point line broke a record for the most errant long-distance attempts in a two-contest span in NBA playoff history.
The Celtics bounced back in Game 3, connecting on 50% of their 40 attempts from deep and winning easily by a score of 115-93. Boston was also solid from behind the arc on Monday, connecting on 18-of-48 tries (37.5%), though it wasn’t enough to put away the Knicks.
If Tatum is unable to play moving forward, New York should have a meaningful advantage. The Knicks only need to win one of three games remaining in the series to move on to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Jalen Brunson Was Huge in Crunch Time Again
Beyond the struggles from the 3-point line in Games 2 and 3, another meaningful part of Boston’s problems have come during crunch time in close games.
The Celtics’ have long perimeter defenders who have impacted Knicks star guard Jalen Brunson over the course of the series, but New York has proven decidedly more effective during the last several minutes of all three games it has won over Boston.
Brunson has been the biggest part of that, averaging 28 points across the series and coming up big down the stretch in Games 1, 2 and 4, all of which the Knicks have won.
Jaylen Brown, who has battled a knee injury during these playoffs, was the Eastern Conference Finals MVP and NBA Finals MVP when the Celtics won the title last year. But Tatum remains the most talented player on Boston’s roster and may not be healthy/available for the remainder of this series. If that proves the case, the Celtics will have to turn to Brown — or another player on the roster — to carry them during crunch time.
