Celtics' Jayson Tatum Had a Frank Evaluation of His Play in Knicks Series So Far

Tatum has struggled through two games of the Eastern Conference semifinals, and the Celtics are down 0-2 as a result.

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum has struggled through the first two games of the Eastern Conference semifinals. / David Butler II-Imagn Images

The Boston Celtics are trailing the New York Knicks 0-2 in their Eastern Conference semifinal series, becoming the first NBA team to blow two 20-plus point leads in a single postseason since the 1996-97 season.

The Celtics, of course, have done it in each of the last two games.

Celtics star Jayson Tatum has played like anything but a star for Boston in the first two games of the series. Tatum has gone 12-for-42 from the field (28%) and 5-for-20 from three (25%) over the two losses, and has looked lost offensively.

Tatum owned his poor play as he spoke with the media on Thursday.

"I take full ownership of the way I've played in this series," Tatum said. "Can't sugarcoat anything. I need to be better. I expect to be a lot better."

Jayson Tatum to @GwashburnGlobe on if he puts pressure on himself to step up:

“I mean, I said it earlier, I take full ownership of the way I’ve played in this series. Can’t sugarcoat anything. I need to be better. I expect to be a lot better.” pic.twitter.com/2KHdF7er1T

— Jack Simone (@JackSimoneNBA) May 8, 2025

Tatum certainly needs to be better offensively as the leader of the Celtics if they want to dig out of an 0-2 hole and get back into the series.

Gane 3 is Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET at Madison Square Garden.

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