Celtics-Knicks: New York May Have Jayson Tatum Stopper

The Boston Celtics are gearing up to face the New York Knicks in the second-round of the NBA playoffs, giving fans even more excitement. Boston swept the season series from the Knicks, and they will be looking to do more damage here.

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The Celtics enter this series as the heavy favorites, but the team understands that the success in the regular season means nothing. The postseason is a different beast, and Boston is looking to make another statement in this series.

New York does pose some problems for the Celtics, mainly due to its star-studded starting five. But the Knicks also have a lot of length on the perimeter, potentially giving the Celtics some fits on offense.

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Entering this series, the Knicks will likely try to highlight the defensive strengths of forward OG Anunoby. Anunoby will likely take on the challenge of guarding star Jayson Tatum, and it could work out well for New York.

During the season, when the two were matched up with one another, Anunoby got the best of Tatum. According to NBA stats, Tatum shot just 5-for-20 when guarded by the Knicks star this season.

Jayson Tatum is shooting 5/20 FG when guarded by OG Anunoby this season, per @nbastats.

It will be a crucial matchup this series. pic.twitter.com/JtDSRMhH55
— KnicksMuse (@KnicksMuse) May 4, 2025

While this may be a small sample size, it seems that Tatum did have some issues on offense when guarded by Anunoby. If the Knicks forward can make life tough on the Celtics star, things could get very interesting for Boston.

Anunoby isn't going to shut down Tatum, but he may be able to make life tough on him. With the two matched up against one another, Tatum is going to have to figure out how to navigate the defense.

The Celtics also have a star-studded roster, so even if Tatum were to struggle, there are others who can help out. But Tatum is the head of the snake, and if he can't be the player that everyone knows he can be, Boston could be in some trouble against the Knicks.

Game 1 between these two teams starts at 7 p.m. ET Monday.

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