Jayson Tatum is not Superman: why the star of the Celtics is struggling in moments of clutch

Jayson Tatum tries to play the hero.

This is the hook of It made his debut this week to promote the next successful “Superman” film in which Tatum, playing in advertising, decides to answer the call. As the story says, Superman takes the day of leave and the world is in danger in search of who will subdural and replace the steel man. The big gain in the announcement shows a tatum adapted to full Clark Kent, taking off his buttoned shirt and revealing a superman jersey below. In this fictitious story, Tatum appears and saves the day.

These types of advertisements take months of planning. An army of staff members behind major brands, high power studios and athletes on demand must weave a 30 -second fairy tale for cinematographic masses and strategic time during the NBA qualifiers. There was no way to know how bad this announcement was bad in the middle of the real profession of Tatum as a star in difficulty of the Boston Celtics, down 0-2 in the eastern semi-finals thanks, in part, to the inability of Tatum to intensify.

Tatum wants you to believe he East The hero. But in reality, his hero-bullet tendencies are turning to the national scene at the moment. Tatum and the Celtics exploded consecutive 20 points at home while Tatum melted in Crunchtime, the most acute in the turnover of the game 2 game.

Unfortunately, the obsession with Tatum's hero-ball is nothing new. Throughout his career, Tatum did not hesitate to know how he idolized Kobe Bryant, the godfather of Hero Ball, who was known to have taken double and triple teams in clutch moments and struck the impossible shot. For Bryant, it was a reputation – if not mythology – which was built . Too often, Tatum has tried to imitate this quality of superheroes and has become empty.

In this way, however, Tatum's Hero-Borant's laws is painfully exact. And the 27 -year -old must abandon the impression of Superman before washing the Celtics of the playoffs.

Tatum paid tribute to Kobe in match 7 of the Eastern Conference final in 2022. (Photo by Matthew J. Lee / The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

(Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Without a doubt, Tatum is certified. He is the NBA champion, an All-Star six times and about to become a five-time member of the NBA. Although Jaylen Brown won the MVP in last year's final, Tatum won the MVP prize for the final of the Eastern Conference of the 2021-2222. When he held this trophy after his formidable performance in a victory for match 7 against the Miami Heat in 2022, a violet sweat of perspiration grabbed his left arm with the number “24” inscribed in gold. He wore the accessory throughout the game in homage, he said, at the late Bryant.

“The seventh game,” Tatum told the post-match ceremony at Center Court. “Everyone knows how much it means for me. My idol. My favorite player. Just to have something to show him in the biggest game in my career so far. And it worked. “

It worked then, but not recently.

Until now, in this series, Tatum has been a mess in the clutch, perhaps hampered by a painful wrist that has sidelined it for a match in the first round. Beyond the end -of -match turnover on Wednesday evening, Tatum is 1 for 7 on the field attempts in clutch situations – the official appointment when the match is less than five points in the last five minutes. Whoever made a basket in this count came to the opening when he went beyond the defense of the Knicks and climbed for a thunderous dunk. Everything else was slammed riders. In the collapse of match 1, Tatum missed his five clutch strokes, all the riders with an average distance of 23.4 feet of the basket.

When Match 2 has become uncontrollable of the Celtics, the team having missed 10 consecutive attempts on the Goal, Tatum decided, all things, to lower their heads and to go iso on the veteran of all-defensive Og Anunoby. The 6 -foot 8 inch wing went down, put his left shoulder in Anunoby's chest on the right block and stopped with the back in the basket.

Everyone in the gym knew what was going to follow. Tatum shook right, then turned for an 11 -foot Fadeaway on the basic line, something straight out of the Kobe game book. Anunoby read it all along and covered the shot with his outstretched hand. He rhymed. Unlike the game game, he at least succeeded.

The problem with Hero Ball is that it is predictable and therefore easily defended. But that is part of the appeal. The lower the chances, the higher the glory if the shot enters. Tatum seemed to lose this selfish strategy in the regular season when he has an average of a career summit of 7.1 assists by 36 minutes of clutch time. In the playoffs, however, he dropped to 1.9. In 19 minutes of narrow and final action, he has only one pass with 2 out of 10 shots in these high pressure moments.

Some could draw it up to a small sample size, but it is the continuation of a greater trend. Despite the victory of the title last season, Tatum has an ineffective assessment in Crunchtime which has only persisted. In the last four seasons, including the terrible final of the East final of 2022, Tatum now draws 35.8% of the soil in clutch situations in the playoffs and a horrible 6 out of 22 (27.3%) beyond the arc, according to the follow up.

Here's how it accumulates among its star peers. The percentage of effective field goals from Tatum, which is weighted for the added value of 3 points, is 41.5% in these narrow and pricing circumstances in the playoffs, which is the lowest among 12 players with at least 30 clutch shooting attempts during this period.

Do you want to extend the size of the sample to include the regular season? Unfortunately for fans of the Celtics, he tells the same story. Tatum's percentage of effective field goals remains at 41.1% in the larger subset. Among high volume scorers with at least 250 clutch shooting attempts since 2021-22222, the percentage of effective Tatum goals are in 20 players on 20 players. Only Fred Vanvleet (40.9%) was worse.

Anyone who has two eyes watching this series can see that the 3 -point column is the most disturbing. Get a gap in the cities of Karl-Anthony? Pull 3 bullets. Do you have 6-2 Brunson on ice skates at the top of the key? Step by step beyond the arc. Mitchell Robinson dancing 25 feet from the edge? Don't attack, let it fly. Celtic draws 20.8% from the 3 clutch points (25 out of 120) in the last four seasons, an ineptie that is only left in this Jimmy Butler star group and its 20.7%.

The big difference? Tatum pulled 120 3 points while Butler only took 58. We know that he should not take as much at this conversion rate.

However, Tatum continued to shoot with impunity. It is perhaps a by-product of the 3-point Joe Mazzulla system that pushes mathematics beyond everything we saw in the NBA. In match 1, the Celtics have established records in the playoff series with the 60 attempts of 3 points and 45 missed at 3 points. In play 2, the Celtics have a little behind, making only 10 attempts of 40. Tatum missed two 3 points in the fourth quarter, one airball and the other an acceptable corner 3 without anyone in two postal codes. He missed it anyway.

We have heard a lot about Tatum's reworked jump before the season. After an post-season struggle beyond the arc and a personally disappointing Olympic Games race, Tatum told journalists that he had worked during the off-season with his coach attracted Hanlen to tighten his 3-point shooting mechanics. Hanlen said he had concentrated on Tatum's rider and tried to find consistency on his balance, his ball and his release point in particular on the disputed shots. After a hot start to the season in which he made 8 out of 11 from a distance, Tatum recorded a percentage of goals in the field in 3 points (34.3). In the playoffs, it ratified at 32.1%.

Tatum must find a way to get into the way more and finish with force. In this series, he pulled 5 of 7 in the restricted area, making 71.4% of his shots near the edge. Good things happen when he pursues the cup. But apart from this area, Tatum in this series draws 7 out of 35, including 1 out of 8 in the middle of the range and 5 out of 20 beyond the arc. Too often, he is content with these looks rather than putting pressure on a Knicks defense that lacks protection against the edge of the elite. In the clutch moments, its ineffective trends are transferred beyond the reproach.

Tatum is not the only player to be examined for the team to drop 0-2 in the series to the rival Knicks. Mazzulla and La Défense did not understand how to slow BRUSON in the greatest moments. Team -scale turnover and overall selection of shots are problems. Kristaps Porziņģis barely played due to a disease.

But the heartbreaking collapses in Boston have exposed Tatum's longtime struggles to crunchtime. Despite the national advertising campaign in the background, Tatum does not have to play the hero and try to do everything by himself. The sooner he realizes that the chances of the Celtics survive this series.

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