Boston Celtics notebook: Jayson Tatum elevates his game as postseason stakes rise: ‘He’s going to be an MVP’

BOSTON — The Celtics were struggling, barely able to muster up offense in a lackluster second quarter. They looked spirited in the first quarter of play, but the ball movement lacked and they were ice-cold from the floor. The Wizards took a two-point lead at halftime, though the C’s salvaged the end of the second by stringing together some buckets.

That’s when Jayson Tatum took over. The Celtics sprinted out in front, courtesy of a 17-2 run as Tatum was stellar after a slow first half. Tatum scored 13 points in roughly five minutes, just a fraction of his 50-point night. The C’s earned their way into the playoffs and the No. 7 seed, blowing out the Wizards 118-100 Tuesday at TD Garden.

Tatum earned some MVP chants at the free-throw line, part of his 17-for-17 performance, which boosted him heavily. Washington coach Scott Brooks agreed with the Boston crowd.

“He’s a great player,” Brooks said of Tatum. “He’s going to be an MVP in this league soon.”

Tatum’s performance Tuesday came off the building blocks of his past few weeks. He scored a career-high 53 points against the Timberwolves, only to reset that with an incredible 60-point performance as the C’s overcame the Spurs in a wild comeback win.

While Tatum enjoyed another career season on his way to his second All-Star appearance, he was bogged down after he contracted COVID-19 in January. It’s been a process getting back to where he was pre-COVID; he said he finally feels like he’s nearing his best self.

“I am proud of myself,” Tatum said. “I’ve been trying to get back to full strength. Obviously, it took me some time and it’s hard to understand what it’s like to come back from something like that and get back to yourself without having it, without being an athlete. It’s a process and I guess you can say I came a long way.”

Old friend

The Celtics are officially the No. 7 in the Eastern Conference playoffs, which pits them against the Brooklyn Nets in the first round. Game 1 will be at 8 p.m. Saturday at Barclays Center; a tough task for the C’s against a talented Brooklyn squad.

That also means a reunion with Kyrie Irving, who signed with the Nets after the 2018-19 NBA season. Interestingly, between the pandemic and injury issues, Irving still hasn’t played in front of a Celtics crowd since he switched jerseys. He’ll have the opportunity to do so next week when the series shifts back to Boston.

“We gotta know that we’re going get a Kyrie Irving that’s playing with a chip on his shoulder,” said Tristan Thompson, who played and won a championship with Irving in Cleveland. “We’ve got to prepare to know that he’s going to come with a killer mentality, and we’ve got to take that and also challenge ourself to make it tough for him every night.”

That team is jam-packed with talent, which Celtics coach Brad Stevens was quick to point out. Aside from Irving, the Nets feature a pair of MVPs in James Harden and Kevin Durant. They’re getting healthy at the right time to make a potential deep playoff run.

“Those guys are the best of the best,” Stevens said of the Nets. “I have a hard time seeing them lose, so we’re going to have to play great. We’re going to have to play great together and be really sound on both ends of the floor.”

Longer breaks?

Stevens said they were mindful of Tatum’s minutes Tuesday, especially because he’s going to log a ton of those during the playoffs. Every TV timeout, Stevens said they were telling Tatum to sit down and rest up as much as possible. Tatum played 41 minutes Tuesday as the Celtics needed his scoring outburst to down the Wizards.

Turns out, the longer commercial breaks during a nationally-televised game might have actually aided Tatum.

“We knew what was at stake,” Tatum said. “I knew I was going to play a lot. Those long TV timeouts helped, just try to get that extra breath and extra rest.”

Injury knock

Aside from Robert Williams’ turf toe issues, the Celtics had another injury scare. Marcus Smart appeared to twist his ankle as he collapsed to the ground during the first half. Smart retreated back to the locker room, only to return a few minutes later and play the rest of the game.

There doesn’t appear to be any long-term issues that will come from Smart, though.

“He’ll probably be sore (Wednesday),” Stevens said. “But I have a weird feeling that he’ll be ready for practice Thursday, knowing Marcus.”