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DALLAS — Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum was mic’d up for Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday night.
At one juncture during a timeout, he was heard instructing the team to steer away from a specific shot that is routinely a low-percentage attempt, even though it’s a weapon for Tatum.
“We’re getting good shots, but we can get better shots,” Tatum was heard saying on the broadcast. “Don’t settle for the step-back three unless it’s late in the shot clock. That goes for all of us, including myself. Every time we drive, we get a wide-open three.”
A player of Tatum’s stature acknowledging what isn’t working in real-time while confessing he’s guilty of the act and must adapt is refreshing.
Following the Celtics taking a 3-0 series lead with a 106-99 victory over the Dallas Mavericks, Tatum granted Bleacher Report an honest and candid interview on how he’s handling the pressures and stresses of lofty expectations with the addition of outside forces pitting him against teammates.
‘Winning Will Take Care of Everything’
Much of Tatum’s game has been maligned throughout the latter stages of the Celtics’ postseason run. Some of the criticisms he’s faced is warranted, but what can’t be denigrated is his selflessness, leadership skills and his will to win a championship at any cost.
“It was funny because as soon as I said that [in the timeout about step-backs], Jrue [Holiday] was like, ‘No, you can take that shot.’ And I just emphasized that I was just trying to say we can’t settle,” Tatum told B/R.
“We do such a good job when we’re putting pressure on them by attacking the matchups, and it creates so much confusion. We can get our threes off whenever we want, but shooting a step-back three with 17 seconds on the clock is different than when it’s six seconds on the clock. If we can create for one another and drive in the paint and get kick-out threes, those numbers, percentage-wise, skyrocket.”
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In the Finals, Tatum’s offensive numbers and accuracy have dipped. He’s averaging 21.6 points on 35.9 percent shooting from the field and 29.6 percent from beyond the arc. He averaged 26.9 points during the regular season.
Tatum is still affecting the game, however, with 8.7 rebounds and 7.3 assists in these three contests.
What the forward does independently of scoring is largely being overlooked, and it has resulted in various Tatum bashings opposed to dissecting the Celtics’ play or how they’re one win away from the franchise’s 18th NBA title.
One wonders if some of the joy is being sucked out of what is supposed to be an exuberant experience.
“I have a good support system,” Tatum told B/R. “You see my mom all the time. My family comes to all the games, and then there’s my son Deuce. Anybody who has kids understands that no matter if you’re having a bad day or bad day at the job, when I see him, he doesn’t care about none of this s–t. He just wants to hang out with Dad. It reminds me and makes me realize what’s really important at the time. I got people at home that love and support me. That removes all the negative chatter surrounding me.”
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‘I Want For My Teammates What I Want For Myself’
Winning Finals MVP is a star’s dream. But it’s not the primary dream at this stage.
Jaylen Brown is presumably in the lead to capture the award. He’s coming off of winning the Eastern Conference Finals MVP and is the team’s leading scorer in the Finals at 24.3 points with an efficient 55.1 field-goal percentage. Oddsmakers have Brown at -340 to take home the hardware, compared to Tatum at +270.
Tatum is seen during the games imploring Brown to be aggressive. No individual award is standing in the way of his goal of ultimate team success.
“Man, I want everybody to be at their best. I want everybody to contribute. Winning will take care of everything,” Tatum told B/R.
“Finals MVP or whatever, a champion is a champion. That’s the goal. I want for my teammates what I want for myself. I want everybody to shine. There’s enough attention for all of us. And so, I want everybody to give us theirs.”
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‘Only Thing They Said I Haven’t Done Is Win’
At 26, where does this perspective come from?
After all, it is customary for many stars to accumulate as many solo accolades as possible before concentrating solely on pursuing championships.
“Because I’ve been here before, and I know what it felt like to lose [in the Finals] and that was the worst feeling ever,” Tatum told B/R. “That was the worst summer I ever had. I made the All-Star team five times. I’m All-NBA first team year after year. The only thing they said I haven’t done is win.
“I just vowed to myself that if I ever got back to the Finals, then I would literally do whatever I needed to do to ensure that we have a different outcome.”
As soon as the final buzzer sounded on Wednesday, Kristaps Porziņģis, who was sidelined with a hamstring injury, emerged from the locker room and shouted “Let’s go motherf–kers” as he went to greet his teammates coming off the court.
Tatum was the last player to leave the floor.
Porziņģis waited for him. And when Tatum saw his big man standing to greet him, a big, wide smile filled his face. Then, the two embraced.
“One more,” they each said.
That different Finals outcome Tatum has been fixated on is vastly approaching.
