Jayson Tatum weathers the ups and downs of his return with help from his Celtics teammates, especially Jaylen Brown
Derrick White got the rebound, tipped it to Brown, who then fed Tatum, who drove for a physical layup. He missed. Neemias Queta rebounded the miss for a score. By then, Tatum was 0 for 7 from the field and his disappointment was apparent.
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On the next possession, White collected a steal, rushed the ball down the floor and fed Brown, who dribbled into the paint, sucked in two defenders, and fed Tatum for what would have been an uncontested two-handed jam. Tatum fumbled the ball out of bounds.
Two possessions later, the same trio was in the action. White collected the defensive rebound, dribbled up the floor and found Brown on the right elbow. Brown had just knocked down a 3-pointer from a similar spot but instead he saw a wide-open Tatum in the right corner, in front of the Celtics bench.
With his teammates imploring him to cash in on the open jumper, Tatum swished the 3-pointer. He finally made a field goal. Friday was Tatum’s worst statistical game as a Celtic as he continues to struggle from the 3-point line.
He’s shooting 29.4 percent from beyond the arc. The encouraging news for the Celtics is the shot looks comfortable and it should eventually start going on. But until then, his teammates are determined to foster the comeback process, including Brown.
“Sometimes things are not going your way or you miss some shots early, you need an easy one,” Brown said. “I’ve been there. I know what that feels like. So sometimes, you over think a little bit too. It’s his first couple of games back, so I think just trying to find him in a rhythm and help him as much as I can is something when I’m on the floor, I’m looking for.”
The Celtics are not asking Tatum for anything more than he is giving. He’s still averaging 19.6 points per game and 8.6 rebounds when he is still far from having full trust in his body. Coach Joe Mazzulla wants Tatum to rebound, make plays and take the open shot. The Celtics have enough scorers to compensate for his early offensive skid.
Minutes wise, his limit has increased from 27 to 32. He’s slowly getting himself back into basketball shape. He showed flashes of his old self during Wednesday’s win over Golden State. On Friday, he was 1-for-10 shooting at halftime and attempted just five shots in the second half but also collected six rebounds and was a plus-2 in his 14 minutes as the Celtics rallied late for the win.
Mazzulla doesn’t want to hear anything about Tatum’s struggles, especially with his shooting percentage. There’s more aspects to his game and Mazzulla said he wants to see more of Tatum emerging from his shell
“Just playing the game,” Mazzulla said Friday of Tatum. “He had nine rebounds, eight defensive rebounds, got to the free throw line, screening; he got other guys open … just continuing to play. I told him that these games are good. As you’re coming back, and obviously you look in the field (goals), you always want it to go well for you. When it’s not, it’s just finding ways to be impactful. I thought he was engaged defensively. I thought he rebounded well for us. I thought he screened for us, made some [plays] for us, and just continues to get better.”
It’s remarkable Tatum was able to return to the Celtics in 10 months. And these games prior to the postseason are essentially for getting him prepared for the rigors of the playoffs. With his natural skill, he’s still one of the best players on the floor but it was obvious Friday that the missed shots were impacting his psyche and Brown made it a point to lift the spirits of his teammate.
It required three possessions to get him that first basket but Brown realizes an engaged Tatum makes the Celtics better. After nine years of playing together, Brown knows his teammate’s emotions, and there was a level of satisfaction in helping Tatum get that first bucket.
Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @GwashburnGlobe.
