Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals has started on Thursday night and Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum is locked in. As Kendrick Lamar's "Euphoria" was blasting at the TD Garden, the star forward got ready to take a 2-0 series lead against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Tatum and the Celtics are looking forward to taking advantage of playing in front of their home crowd tonight. Boston won 120-95 in Game 1 on Tuesday night, but the former Duke star didn't have a huge scoring night. He ended with 18 points and 11 rebounds but thanks to Jaylen Brown and Derrick White, they got the win.
Thursday night, many expect the forward to perform well and lead his team to another victory. Watch the video below to see Tatum prepare for Game 2 of the second round.
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During the first round, Tatum averaged 21.8 points, 10.4 rebounds and 5.4 assists in the five-game series against the Miami Heat. The Celtics star had trouble shooting the ball from past the 3-point arc, as he knocked down 29.0% of his attempts. But even with his struggles, the star had a great series to advance to the next round.
Celtics coach addressed Jayson Tatum's offensive3 struggles
Jayson Tatum hasn't shot the ball well in the postseason. In Game 1 against the Cavs, he went 0-for-5 from beyond the arc and 7-for-19 overall.
While fans have expressed their frustration over the star player's shooting struggles, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla defended him.
"I think he’s doing a great job of taking what the defense gives him and finding any way to impact the game on both ends of the floor. That’s what we need him to be, and he’s doing a really good job of it," Mazzulla said.
Fans are hoping for a different story for Tatum in Game 2, as they need his presence and offensive tenacity to win.
Additionally, his former coach and current president of basketball operations for the Celtics, Brad Stevens, isn't worried. Despite his struggles, Stevens is confident that Tatum can get back to performing like an All-Star in this series.
"There are a lot of things in this job that I lose sleep over. What someone thinks about Jayson Tatum — or Jayson Tatum playing well — is not one," Stevens said.
Stevens also pointed out that he's confident that Tatum will answer the call when needed. Despite not having a great stretch in recent games, the executive trusts that Boston's franchise player will perform at a high level when needed.
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