Jayson Tatum endures another slow scoring start vs. 76ers in Game 5

BOSTON — Jayson Tatum finished third in NBA MVP voting this year, and he ranked sixth in the league in scoring.

Clearly, he’s one of the best basketball players in the world. But he’s had a difficult time showing that for two consecutive first halves.

After a dreadful 1-for-9 first half in Game 4 — an eventual loss for the Celtics in Philadelphia — Tatum took the court on Tuesday night back home, no doubt looking to make that memory a mere afterthought. But Tuesday ended up just being almost a repeat performance.

With the series tied at two games apiece, Tatum missed his first six shots from the field in Game 5. Through the first 18 minutes of the game, he had just four points — three scored on free throws, one on a technical free throw.

He finally made his first field goal midway through the second quarter on a runner near the rim, making him 1-for-7 on the evening.

He missed his next shot — a straightaway three about three minutes later — but was left uncovered after the Al Horford offensive rebound, leading to an uncontested dunk for Tatum.

That dunk got him going slightly, as Tatum hit his next shot — a three from the left wing. He’d drain a couple of free throws 35 seconds later, and then hit two more freebies with 26.4 seconds left in the first half.

Tatum took one more shot — a running three from distance at the buzzer while trying to draw a foul — but missed, leaving him at 3-for-11 from the field and 1-for-6 from 3-point range in the first half. 

That modest push late in the second quarter helped salvage the first-half performance overall, as Tatum was able to get his point total up to 15 before the break. (Tatum’s slow start helped conceal Al Horford’s 0-for-6 start from the field, with all of his attempts coming from behind the arc.) The Celtics headed to halftime trailing 58-49.

For Tatum, it ended up being better than Sunday’s 1-for-9 performance in the first half. And Tuesday’s first-half stat line included five rebounds, three assists and a steal, with no turnovers, so once again the contributions involved more than just the shooting.

Still, for the second straight game, Tatum’s shot was off — way off — to start the game. If the team hopes to get over this hump in front of them and go on a long playoff run, that surely can’t become a trend.