Jayson Tatum’s injury overshadows Celtics’ Game 4 loss to Knicks: Takeaways
Tatum crumpled to the floor after a non-contact injury that looked like the worst thing to happen to the Celtics franchise in decades.
COMMENTARY
The Celtics lost to the Knicks 121-113, and chances are you, the reader, don’t really care very much about the final score or the fact that the Celtics are on the verge of bowing out of their title defense in the Eastern Conference semifinals, because with 2:58 left in the fourth quarter, Jayson Tatum crumpled to the floor after a non-contact injury that looked very much like the worst thing to happen to the Celtics franchise in decades.
We won’t speculate on exactly what the injury was (or what the fallout could be down the line just yet) but for now, it will suffice to say that Tatum planted his foot and pushed off, and then immediately fell to the floor, slamming the ground in pain. He couldn’t put any weight on the ankle, and ESPN’s cameras recorded him weeping as he was pushed down the hallway in a wheelchair. Joe Mazzulla offered no further information in his postgame press conference other than to say that Tatum’s MRI will take place tomorrow morning, but the fairly safe guess here is that his season is over.
We know quite a bit about Jayson Tatum, at this point. We know he’s a devoted father to Deuce. We know his background story – that his mom took classes with a young Tatum in the classroom with her, and that her young family struggled financially early in his life. We know that his father was hard on him, but that Tatum has learned to appreciate that now, as a professional athlete. We know how much he loved Kobe Bryant. We know his childhood nickname (Taco). We know his favorite pizza (Imo’s in St. Louis).
And more than anything, we know how much Jayson Tatum loves basketball. He loves the story of it. He loves the idea that he now has a place in that story, that – like his childhood idols – he is imprinting himself on the game’s history. Over the years, he has embraced fully that he is also imprinting himself upon the history of one of the league’s greatest franchises.
And, of course, he plays the game a whole lot. He plays as much as possible on the road, because he knows there are young fans – fans perhaps as young as Deuce – who love the Celtics, and who got a No. 0 jersey for their birthday and are there in hopes of seeing him. The only seasons he played fewer than 72 games were seasons when the Celtics had fewer than 82. He loves the spotlight and thrives in the playoffs when the Celtics need a big game (look no further than the 42 points he poured in before Monday’s disaster).
Up until Monday, Tatum’s body has never betrayed him in a meaningful way. Like every NBA player, he picks up the occasional knock over the course of a season (his wrists often seem to be troublesome), but he has battled through those injuries and taken the franchise deep into the playoffs and – at last – to a title last year.
The joke on social media has always been that Tatum is “only 19” – a reference to the feats he achieved in his rookie season, when he precociously led a banged-up team to the Eastern Conference finals and dunked on LeBron James.
But Tatum is no longer 19. He’s 27 now. A 19-year-old feels immortal, but then they turn 20, and 21, and 22, and somehow the numbers keep ticking upward and eventually, you are no longer young and invincible but rather – in basketball terms – middle-aged. That’s where Tatum is now – just entering the prime of his career and the peak of his powers. That’s what made watching him this year such a treat on a night-to-night basis – he was no longer a bizarre amalgamation of what he learned from Celtics assistants, Drew Hanlen and watching Kobe Bryant film, but rather something close to a fully realized version of himself.
On Saturday, after the Celtics’ Game 3 victory, Tatum admitted he lives a charmed existence.
“I live a great life, I ain’t gonna lie,” Tatum said. “I make a lot of money, I take care of my family, I’ve been able to experience a lot of things.”
If you keep playing basketball long enough, however, eventually it becomes cruel. On Monday, the sport into which Tatum has invested his life, and all of his considerable talent finally took its pound of flesh.
We don’t have confirmation yet that Tatum’s injury is what we think it is, but by all accounts, the injury that we all think Tatum suffered is very apparent to the person who suffered it immediately.
So when you see Tatum weeping as he is wheeled away, remember that he presumably isn’t just mourning the loss of a series or a title defense.
He has lost – for the first time, and at the peak of his powers – a pound of flesh that the game inevitably takes from you, no matter how much you love it.
Here, for whatever it’s worth, are a couple more takeaways.
The Celtics were, of course, very down
The biggest question for every coach and player, of course, was about Tatum.
“It’s tough,” a devastated-looking Jaylen Brown said, then adding after a lengthy pause, “there’s not really a lot to say.”
Brown later added that the Celtics might need some time to process.
“I think everybody’s kind of at a loss for words, just because, not losing the game, but obviously with JT,” he said. “But we pick our heads back up tomorrow and go from there.”
Al Horford agreed that by far the most important thing was Tatum’s health.
“The game stuff, we’ll address it,” he said. “I’m just hoping that he’s okay.”
Even Jalen Brunson interrupted the first question of his press conference to address it.
“Prayers out to JT, man,” he said. “I just want to say that first and foremost.”
Still, Kristaps Porzingis noted that there is still basketball to be played.
“We’re grown men, you know?” he said. “Who hasn’t had injuries? It’s a part of this sport, part of this game, and we feel for him, of course. But we have to move forward. He doesn’t want us to be sad and not playing our best basketball. So we’re going to go out there and leave it all out there and live with the results.”
The Knicks finally looked like the better team
If the Celtics had made an extra 3-pointer or two in Games 1 and 2, Game 4 would have felt like a blip until the disastrous final minutes – the courtesy game pundits gave the Knicks when they predicted Celtics in 5. All the Celtics needed to do was make an extra open 3-pointer or two – not a big ask, one would think – and the Knicks getting a heroic performance from Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges on Monday would have been a point of pride, rather than what felt very much like the end of a title defense.
Instead, the Celtics looked like they were out of ideas even before Tatum’s injury and were fully reliant on his heroics to keep them alive. When Jrue Holiday sat down with three fouls in the third quarter, Brunson came alive and torched Derrick White (as well as anyone else in his way) en route to 39 points.
Meanwhile, the Knicks grabbed 13 offensive rebounds and scored 15 second-chance points, more than making up the difference.
In Games 1 and 2, the Celtics looked like the better team who went brutally cold at the wrong time.
In Game 4, they looked like a team on its last legs.
Mikal Bridges demolished the Celtics’ drop coverage
With Jalen Brunson out to start the fourth quarter, the Knicks maintained the lead – or close to it – thanks to Bridges, whose 23 points were a huge boost as they held the Celtics at bay.
Bridges jabbed and stabbed the Celtics over and over in the pick-and-roll with a series of mid-range jumpers, picking on both Luke Kornet and Kristaps Porzingis whenever they tried to defend him in drop coverage. Any time either big man played a step back and allowed Derrick White to try to defend him from the side, Bridges absorbed the contact and got into his shot comfortably.
Game 5 is Wednesday
The Celtics don’t have long to lick their wounds: Game 5 tips off at TD Garden on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
“We have the talent,” Porzingis said. “We have a lot of talent. Even with JT out, even me maybe playing 10-15 minutes, we have the guys and we’ve shown in the past that we can play still really good basketball.
“Obviously, like, there’s no replacement for this guy, no? Like, this is a big hit for us, 100 percent. But again, we have to play with the hand we’re dealt right now, and this is it.”
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com