Jayson Archives

The Boston Celtics could see the finish line. A 3-2 lead was right there if they could just keep their wits about them and stay on their feet. And then one stumble. Then another, and another, and suddenly, improbably, the Milwaukee Bucks nipped them at the tape to steal control of the East semifinal series.

“We gave it away,” Jaylen Brown said. “That’s how we lost it.”

Now, the action shifts back to Milwaukee for Game 6 and one of the most significant moments of the Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown era.

The duo, which has been together since Tatum arrived in the 2017 draft, has already made a number of deep playoff runs together. There was the surprise trip to the Eastern Conference finals in Tatum’s rookie season in 2018, where they ultimately lost Game 7 at home to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. They got back to the ECF in 2020 in the bubble, but were not fully healthy and couldn’t take care of business against the Miami Heat in a strange environment.

Both of those defeats were frustrating, but they felt like positive stepping stones for a young team at the time. The reins hadn’t fully been handed to Tatum and Brown, and in neither season were the Celtics likely to actually win the title if they broke through to the Finals — certainly not in 2018 against the Golden State Warriors at the height of their powers, and probably not against the LeBron and Anthony Davis-led Lakers in 2020.

None of those caveats apply this time around. This is well and truly Tatum and Brown’s team, and it would be a massive disappointment if they bow out in the second round, even to the defending champions. The title race is wide open this season, and

The Boston Celtics’ 15-point lead had disappeared, Kyrie Irving had caught fire and there were only 11 seconds to salvage their series opener on Sunday. Derrick White pushed the ball in transition and gave it up to Jaylen Brown, who drove baseline, and, when two Brooklyn Nets cut him off, spun to his left and kicked it out to Marcus Smart. Instead of trying to be the hero, Smart pump-faked, dribbled past the two Nets flying at him and dished it to a cutting Jayson Tatum.

Spin move. Layup. Game. Bedlam.

“Honestly, I think we all thought Smart was going to shoot it,” Tatum said. “So, last-second shot, just crash the glass; if it doesn’t go in, try to make a play. But when he took that dribble, we just kind of made eye contact. And he made a great pass. I just had to make a layup.”

The game-winner at TD Garden gave Tatum 31 points on 9-for-18 shooting, Smart his sixth assist and the Celtics a 115-114 Game 1 victory. It also gave Boston a massive sigh of relief.

“Those are the best games,” Tatum said. “The games that are the most rewarding, the most fun, just as a competitor. We’re up 15 and we go down five and … the only thing you gotta do is just try to figure it out.”

Brooklyn began the fourth quarter down by 11 points. It had committed 14 turnovers, and it had been beaten up on the glass. The Nets took the lead with a 15-2 run, driven primarily by Irving, who scored 18 of his game-high 39 points in the final frame. Irving did his damage on 12-for-20 shooting, with six assists, four steals and five rebounds.

Kevin Durant finished with 23 points on 9-for-24 shooting, with four rebounds,

Tag: Jayson

Celtics vs. Bucks: Boston faces most significant moment of Jayson Tatum-Jaylen Brown era after Game 5 collapse

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