The playoffs exposed fraudsmasquerading as superstars. There is a long list of people. There's a chance you can add the man to that list. His game fell apart in the finals after he put on a big show in the playoffs. His shooting percentage from the field was terrible, and barely helped his average. He shot 31.6% from 2. It was thought that Tatum had become a star this season. He fell prey to Andrew Wiggins. He scored 13 points on 6-of-18 shooting, seven assists, three rebound, and five turnovers in the Game 6 loss.
His 100 turnovers were the most in NBA playoff history. His travel with 3:32 left in the game was the best example of his turnover output. After spiking the ball. He ended the game with five mistakes.
Losing to the Warriors is nothing to be embarrassed of. They stole the first game. They lost the series at home by double-digits after taking a 2-1 series lead. They lost every game by a wide margin. At least the one we were used to was nowhere to be found. He scored two points in the second half of the game. He only scored 18 points in the fourth quarter.
It wasn't the only offense that was problematic. His 25 turnovers in a series are unacceptable and show a lack of focus and decision-making that is normally not seen in superstars. Tatum's on-court output was immature and he rarely displayed emotion. He tried to shoot his way out of a slump many times. In the first four games, he did this.
Ime Udoka is a Celtics coach.
He has always figured it out when he sees multiple different coverages. Throughout the first few series, he did that. This was not easy. The team did a lot of things to limit him. He knows that he will see this for the rest of his career. This isn't the end.
It is a testament to how unprepared he was that he wasn't the leading scorer for the Celtics in the Finals. Jaylen Brown was the team's leading scorer with 23.5 points. Even though he was the leading scorer for every other series, he couldn't step up when it mattered the most.
The Celtics turned their season around and got them to the finals. The best season of his career was this one. It is difficult to win a title without a second option. Brown isn't great. Without another star on the team, the Celts needed to have a puncher's chance at beating the Warriors in order to have a chance at winning the title. He averaged 27 points, 6.7 rebound, and 5.9 assists in the 18 games before the finals, and was the Eastern Conference finals Most Valuable Player. There was no reason to think that wouldn't happen.
The man was in his way. He had assignments against Jarren Jackson Jr. and Luka Doni in the playoffs. Doni had to look like barbecue chicken after an exhaustion series slowed him down and shut him down as a facilitation. It is not to say that he is a pushover. He wasn't on Doni's level after he averaged 32 ppg, 9.2 rpg, and 6 apg in the Western Conference finals.
It might have been the most glaring case of fraudulent superstar activity of the season. That is saying a lot with the fact that he is on the list. He was always a sure bet to be the man. He was the closest thing to Kobe Bryant we have in the league. In the 1997 Western Conference Semifinals, Bryant had four airballs as a freshman.
He has been in the league for five years and has gotten better every year by increasing his points, assists, and rebound. He has made three straight All-Star Games and was named to the First Team in the NBA. The man will have his moment. He is still not there. Future champion's soul is eaten by these types of playoffs losses. Curry, Thompson, and Green all lost under Mark Jackson. The Finals will be back in the not too distant future. The hope is that he comes back as a big star.
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