In Brooklyn, the premier player for the Celtics performed. Getty Images/Sarah Stier
CNN – Five-time On Tuesday, NBA All-Star Jayson Tatum scored a game-high 41 points and pulled down 14 rebounds to help the Boston Celtics defeat the Brooklyn Nets 118-110.
With Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Kristaps PorziņĿis in their starting lineup, the Celtics have one of the top five-man units in the NBA. Although Porziņģis missed Tuesday’s game due to a lower back contusion sustained against the Miami Heat on Sunday, they didn’t appear to be having any trouble without the Latvian centre.
Every one of the five Celtics starters scored in double figures as they dominated Brooklyn’s defence, with veteran big man Al Horford filling in at the five.
Despite facing a struggling Nets team, Boston managed to maintain a comfortable lead throughout the game and evened off a late fourth-quarter rally by Brooklyn that would have brought the game to within six points. Tatum scored 31 points in the first half alone, and the Celtics led by 15 points at the half, so most of the damage was done before the buzzer. Tatum makes a dunk in the course of play. Afriyie, Peter K./AP
The 25-year-old looked to be headed towards breaking his career-high of sixty points, but he cooled off in the second half, taking just nine shots and scoring ten more points. Following the game, he said there was “no temptation” to try to smash the record.
After the game, Tatum remarked, “We’ve got a really good team where in any given possession we could have two, three advantages and it’s not just going to be me.”
“So all I have to do is realise that and that I depend on my teammates.” I need everyone, and everyone needs everyone else.
Tatum is making his way into the discussion for Most Valuable Player by virtue of being the greatest player on the top team in the league, averaging 27 points and nearly nine rebounds per game. The fans even chanted “MVP” for him during the game, even though it was being played at Brooklyn’s Barclays Centre.
Tatum and the Celtics are hoping to overcome their disappointment of losing the NBA Finals in 2022 and the Eastern Conference finals last year, and win the franchise’s 18th NBA championship.
Following the game, Tatum’s primary goal, according to Boston head coach Joe Mazzulla, is to win. “I believe that understanding that he must perform well for us each and every night, even though it looks different every night, is part of his growth as a player.”
The Celtics, who are now leading the Eastern Conference and improved to 42-12 following the victory, are statistically the greatest team in the NBA. The Minnesota Timberwolves are leading the West with 38-16, while the Cleveland Cavaliers are six games back in the East with 35-17.
Even with Ben Simmons returning to the starting lineup, the Nets could not cross the threshold, even with the scoring heroics of Mikal Bridges (27 points) and Cam Thomas (26 points) on the wings. Currently sitting at the 11th seed in the East and barely shy of a Play-In Tournament place, Brooklyn is 21-32 on the season.
