While the Boston Celtics comprehensively routed the Dallas Mavericks to their defeat in Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Finals, their leading scorer Jayson Tatum had a tough shooting night. He made just six of his 16 attempts from the field and to make matters worse, he committed six turnovers. Meanwhile, Celts Center Kristaps Porzingis brought a great rescue act and hoarded 20 points on 8/13 shooting from the floor in just 21 minutes after missing 30+ days due to an injury.
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Alluding to Tatum’s sloppy play and the Unicorn’s winning contributions, Skip Bayless prompted Tatum to relay his gratitude towards the Latvian Center.
On UNDISPUTED, Bayless pointed out how Porzingis’ insertion in the first quarter saved the day for JT otherwise he would have faced severe criticism for his underwhelming scoring numbers,
“Jayson Tatum should’ve gone home last night and dropped down to his knees and thank God for the Unicorn because the Unicorn’s 18 points in 13 minutes took Jayson right off the hot seat and the hook.”
“Jayson Tatum should’ve went home last night, dropped to his knees and thank God for the Unicorn.”
— @RealSkipBayless pic.twitter.com/458ovtad4n
— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) June 7, 2024
The 72-year-old then re-iterated Tatum’s underwhelming shooting and turnover stats to bring his point home. The FS1 analyst referred to Tatum’s post-game press conference where he confessed to being nervous about the start of the NBA Finals. Moreover, he has received a lot of criticism for his no-show in crucial situations.
The analyst wasn’t convinced by this reasoning and opined that an athlete of Tatum’s stature should have learned to bury such jitters by now. At any rate, the forward is drawing criticism despite leading the team in rebounds and assists while bringing solid defense.
Does Jayson Tatum receive unwarranted criticism?
While JT can undergo shooting troubles, he is not just a one-dimensional scoring threat. He has been a force at the rebounding end, plays tough defense from multiple angles, and is a willing ball-rotator. Thanks to his all-around heroics, he made the All-NBA First Team for the third consecutive season. But that hasn’t stopped the consistent doubts raised over his elite status.
However, the top-notch forward has shown immense maturity when discussing the media’s treatment of him. During a press conference in the early playoffs window, while addressing his critics, Tatum expressed,
“I wouldn’t say I take it as disrespect, I don’t always agree to what they say. Maybe I feel like they are not watching everything else that I’m doing but that’s not my job to focus on that. My job is to be the best player that I can be on any given night.”
Jayson Tatum with a very thoughtful answer on whether the media disrespects his all-around game:
“I respect your guys’ job, I respect the guys on TV… I understand what the media has brought to our game — more eyes, more attention, and how everybody has benefited from that.” pic.twitter.com/cEBBFz0lE7
— Noa Dalzell 🏀 (@NoaDalzellNBA) May 12, 2024
One of the major reasons why the perennial superstar has been intensely scrutinized stems from his joining a perennial title contender as a rookie in 2017. The expectations have surged because his squad rarely fizzles out before the Eastern Conference Finals and has made two Finals trips in three years.
Much to his credit, instead of being the sole enforcer on the offensive end, Tatum has learned how to play team ball and knows that he needs to be more than just a scorer. Thanks to that, his Celts are on the cusp of their 18th title in franchise history.
