Being on top of the NBA comes with a certain set of expectations, especially when dealing against lower-ranked teams. Unfortunately, Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics forgot the memo when they blew a 30-point lead and lost to the Atlanta Hawks.
In that particular game, the Celtics allowed Atlanta to go home with the 120-118 victory, even after establishing a sizeable lead. Boston All-Star forward Jayson Tatum led his team by tallying 37 points, eight rebounds, and five assists in 39 minutes on the court. Jaylen Brown added 24 points while Kristaps Porzingis made 17 of his own.
Over on the Hawks’ side of things, Atlanta’s starting lineup all scored in double-digits with De’Andre Hunter’s 24 points leading the pack. Bruno Fernando came off the bench and added 13 points to seal the win for a Hawks team without Trae Young in it.
In the end, Boston still retained its hold on the Eastern Conference’s top spot with 57 wins and 15 losses. Atlanta, meanwhile, is in 10th place with 32 wins and 39 losses. Furthermore, the Hawks still have a chance to make the playoffs via the Play-In Tournament, especially after getting a win against the top-seeded Celtics.
Jayson Tatum Shares His Thoughts About Boston Celtics’ Collapse in Loss to Atlanta Hawks
After the game, Tatum spoke to reporters and gave them a piece of his mind about Boston’s collapse against the Hawks. In a video shared by Noa Dalzell on X:
Full quote from Jayson Tatum:
“It’s tough. You want to win every game you play. People think we never should lose. We was up a lot. We fucked the game up, and we know that. We’re all adults and professionals, and we know we didn’t do the things necessary to win. That’s sometimes easier to fix when you know if you do the right things, and play the right way, the way you’re supposed to, you know usually what the outcome is going to be.”
— Noa Dalzell 🏀 (@NoaDalzellNBA) March 26, 2024
Tatum’s admission may seem kinda harsh, but the All-Star forward has reason to be blunt about Boston’s performance against the Hawks. For a team that’s ranked first in offense and third in defense, the Celtics should have gone home with the win, instead of blowing their lead against the 10th-seeded Hawks.
With less than a month to go before the regular season ends, there’s still some time for Tatum and the Celtics to get their groove back. If they do, expect Boston to steamroll whoever they’ll face in the postseason.
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