Boston Celtics: Takeaways from preseason opener vs. Charlotte Hornets
Irving and Tatum assertive looking for individual scoring
With seven minutes left in the third quarter, Jayson Tatum hoisted up a long, difficult, contested mid-range pull-up jumper. I counted it as his fourth; he had hit one of them.
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Tatum was 3-11 from the field in a forgettable performance. After the game, Tommy Heinsohn remarked that he was a bit disappointed by Tatum’s showing, saying he was trying to create his own offense too frequently instead of finding his spots within the system.
After the draft, some questioned Ainge’s selection of Tatum. They were worried that he was a one-dimensional individual scorer who couldn’t function within a system.
While Jayson Tatum spent much of last season making those analysts look like fools, it shouldn’t be too surprising to see the sophomore’s shot selection occasionally regress.
Kyrie Irving turned in a 4-10 performance. Like Hayward, he was coming back from injury. He looked good physically – he attacked well, and he dazzled with his handles, per usual.
Related Story. Jayson Tatum adds muscle and a whole lot of swag. light
He also took a lot of tough pull-up jumpers out of isolations. That’s really fine; he hits those with regularity, and if one more went in his shooting numbers would look okay. But if you’re a Boston Celtics fan, you’d probably like for him to hijack the offense a little bit less.