Is Jayson Tatum playing tonight against the Celtics? Latest injury update on Celtics' star ahead of matchup (23rd May 2023)
Jayson Tatum didn't play up to his standards in the lowly 128-102 Game 3 loss to the Miami Heat. In one of his worst games played, Tatum failed to deliver the goods when his team and the Boston fanbase needed him most.
In a win-or-go-home Game 4 at Miami's homecourt, Jayson Tatum is available to play with the Celtics' season on the line. During this third-round matchup, he is averaging 26.0 points (45.5% shooting) and 10.0 rebounds.
His shooting numbers from the 3-point range and average in assist numbers have gone down compared to how he did against the Hawks and the 76ers.
Jayson Tatum is shooting 25.0% from 3-point range in this series. Tatum shot 35.0% with his 3-pointers during the first-round matchup against the Hawks. In the second-round series against the 76ers, he shot 36.8% from 3-point range.
Meanwhile, for Tatum's assist numbers in this series, he is averaging only 3.7 apg. In the Hawks series, he averaged 5.3 apg. During the 76ers matchup, Jayson averaged 5.0 apg.
Throughout this year's playoffs, Jayson has struggled the most against the Miami Heat's defense as he has not looked and played like himself. He would run into turnover problems in the fourth quarter and hit a dry spell with his shotmaking as Miami makes things uncomfortable for him.
Tatum had 14 points (6-of-18 shooting, including 1-of-7 from 3-point range) and 10 rebounds in his previous game. He appeared out of sorts for much of the game, as Celtics looked lifeless on the road.
Tatum looked terrific with his 51-point performance in Game 7 against Philadelphia, but he lacked that same energy down 2-0 to Miami.
Jayson Tatum on the Celtics' needed mindset to bounce back in Game 4
Following the disappointing Game 4 loss, Jayson Tatum spoke to the media regarding the Celtics' tough position and the needed mindset for Game 4.
"As tough as tonight was, we just got to try and move on," Tatum said. "Prepare, get ready, practice and film stuff for tomorrow. Obviously, Obviously, we're in a tough position, but we've got to have some pride, bounce back and just be better come Tuesday."
With their season on the line, Tatum needs to come out strong right from the jump and never look back. The Celtics will only go as far as Jayson Tatum takes them and they can start by winning one game at a time.