Celtics’ Jayson Tatum Shoulders Blame Following Nuggets Loss

BOSTON — Celtics forward Jayson Tatum had two chances to score in the final minute of Boston’s loss to the Denver Nuggets on Friday at TD Garden.

He missed both.

Tatum, after grabbing a defensive rebound with 22 seconds on the clock, raced up the floor and tried to get straight to the basket for a layup. It would have given the Celtics a lead, but the 25-year-old fumbled the ball and eventually missed his attempt.

“I kind of rushed it, and that’s on me,” Tatum told reporters following the game. “In the back of my mind, I wasn’t sure if they were going to foul. They had a foul to give. I had more time than I gave myself, I just have to take more time but that’s something I can learn from.”

“I missed a couple of bunnies at the end there. I’ve got to be better.”

Celtics forward Jayson Tatum

He had a chance at redemption moments later, needing to hit one of his signature turnaround jumpers to force overtime after Denver hit a free throw to hold a two-point advantage. He, again, looked to rush getting the shot up and missed.

It was a tough few moments, especially considering they combined to bury the Celtics’ 20-game home winning streak. It’s something Tatum plans to learn from, however, pushing him to continue to be better in those clutch moments.

“You always want to be aggressive,” Tatum added. “You let your instincts take over and try to make the right play, but I missed a couple of bunnies at the end there. I’ve got to be better, just really have to finish those.

“… We played well. I mean, obviously we didn’t play well enough to win, we’ve got to be better. I just think it’s as simple as that. … I did some things well tonight, but there are some things that I can do better.”

Tatum, along with co-star Jaylen Brown, didn’t have his best offensive night. The stud duo combined to score just 35 points on 15-of-43 shooting. If you want to make matters worse, the Celtics actually played a tremendously clean game on the offensive end, turning the ball over just twice.

They just weren’t hitting shots.

In the loss, though, the Celtics gained something valuable. It’s clear they’ve got the capabilities to compete with the reigning NBA Finals winner, even when their two best players aren’t on top of their game.

If there’s a rematch, which many hope there will be, you can count on Tatum to be better prepared.