NBA Finals: Boston Celtics’ Jayson Tatum tanks in Game 4

In a back-and-forth NBA Finals, Golden State Warriors levelled the series 2-2 after a barnstorming Game 4. Stephen Curry was at the heart of their revival, dropping 43 points in a 97-107 win at Boston Celtic’s TD Garden. While the Warriors point guard turned in a sublime performance, Celtics’ talisman Jayson Tatum endured an unremarkable evening. Starting strong, he threatened to steal the Dubs’ thunder, picking off 18 points three-plus minutes into the second half. However, the small forward tapered as the game wore on, missing a litany of two and three-point conversions. His conversion ratio of 8-of-23 (4-of-15 on two-pointers) while committing 6 turnovers is hardly impressive, especially when you have Steph landing baskets from all corners of the court. His tally of 23 points was still the highest on the Celtics roster, but given how cut-throat top-level sport is, a minor drop in levels can have a massive effect on your team’s fortunes. Tatum’s Game 4 was certainly not as bad as Draymond’s Game 3– 11 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 blocks in addition to the 23 points- but it still did not save him from rabid fans on Twitter.

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But the reactions are not as knee-jerk as they may seem. Tatum went the last 10 minutes of the final quarter without scoring a single point, missing four attempts in trying to do so. But his struggles did not just begin tonight! The Celtics star’s conversion ratio across the finals has been abysmal, with only 28 of an attempted 82 field goals scored. That is a lowly 34.1% of chances converted! Coach Udoka will demand more precision from his forward in the coming games.

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The loss means that Boston will have to travel to the Dubs’ Chase Centre base, irrespective of whether they win or lose Game 5 of the finals. While they did nick a victory in the first instalment of this ongoing series, the Warriors are generally ruthless at home (and away) and will expect the vociferous support of the San Francisco faithful to work in their favour!