Welcome to "One Play!" Throughout the 2021-22 NBA season, our TSN Staff will break down certain possessions from certain games and peel back the curtains to reveal their bigger meaning.
Today, Celtics star Jayson Tatum takes the spotlight.
Context: Jayson Tatum couldn't buy a bucket in Game 1 of the Finals, and yet he still made his presence felt.
Al Horford (26), Jaylen Brown (24), Derrick White (21) and Marcus Smart (18) each finished with more points than Tatum (12) on a night he shot 3-for-17 from the field, but he dished out a game-high 13 assists while committing only two turnovers.
In the process, Tatum broke a record previously held by John Stockton, Michael Jordan and Isiah Thomas. Not bad company for him to be in.
Jayson Tatum’s 13 assists in Game 1 mark a new NBA record for most assists in an NBA Finals debut! #NBA75 pic.twitter.com/krYVftiyiO
— NBA History (@NBAHistory) June 3, 2022
There was a specific way that Tatum was able to punish the Warriors with his passing in Game 1.
You know what that means — to the film room!
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The play:
Breakdown: Tatum brings the ball up the court for the Celtics following a layup from Draymond Green.
As Tatum approaches the halfcourt, White moves toward him to set a screen. The plan? Put Stephen Curry in a pick-and-roll in an effort to get him switched onto Tatum.
The Warriors, of course, don't want Curry guarding Tatum.
Curry has improved tremendously as a defender in his career, but he's still only 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, putting him at quite a size disadvantage against Tatum, who is listed at 6-foot-8 and 210 pounds.
To avoid the switch and prevent Tatum from getting a straight-line drive to the basket, the Warriors have Curry hedge...
...before recovering to White, who pops out to the top of the 3-point line following his screen.
Success? Sort of.
Tatum doesn't get the switch he's looking for, but he is able to get a step on Andre Iguodala and attacks the basket. That leads to Green helping off of Robert Williams III to protect the rim.
All eyes are now on Otto Porter Jr., who has to make a tough decision.
If Porter sticks to Payton Pritchard, a career 41.2 percent 3-point shooter, in the corner, he risks Williams, a dunking machine, waltzing his way to the hoop.
If he slides down to take that option away...(see photo below)
Klay Thompson could've rotated over to Pritchard, but he was probably hesitant to leave Brown, who scored 10 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter.
Why it matters: Tatum was asked about the key to his playmaking postgame.
"Just reading the play," he responded. "They do a great job of helping and things like that. So, you know, obviously it's just as simple as if you draw two, find somebody that's open. That's what I was just trying to do."
It sounds incredibly simple, but it's also incredibly effective.
Even on a night where Tatum couldn't throw the ball in the ocean, the Warriors were terrified of him getting going because, well, he's one of the best scorers in the NBA. He's averaging 26.3 points per game in these playoffs, putting him behind only eight players for most in the league. He's only shooting 43.4 percent from the field, but he's more than capable of getting going from all three levels and putting up big numbers.
Just ask the Nets. Or the Bucks. Or the Heat.
Tatum used all of the attention the Warriors were paying him to his advantage time...
...and time...
...and time...
...and time again in Game 1 by making the right play at the right time despite not being able to hit a shot.
"We've talked about it throughout the year and I've talked to him at length about impacting the game when he's not having his best offensive night," Celtics head coach Ime Udoka said about Tatum after Game 1. "So he did that tonight. Obviously going 3-17, that's usually not going to happen.
"What he did well and did early was get others involved. Seven of nine assists pretty early in the game, finished with 13, and the shots not falling, he still attracts a good amount of attention, made the right plays.
"I love his growth and progression in those areas, where he's still guarding on the defensive end, still getting others involved, not pouting about his shots, and trying to play through some mistakes and physicality they were playing with him."
It helps that Celtics not named Tatum shot the lights out from 3-point range — nine of his 13 assists led to a 3-pointer, according to ESPN's Matt Williams, the most ever in a Finals game — but it was his relentless attacking that forced the Warriors to collapse in ways that created those opportunities.
A scary sign for the Warriors: Tatum has had several rough shooting games in these playoffs and he's responded in a big way each time. He picked the Warriors apart with his passing in Game 1, but his scoring could easily take center stage in Game 2 and beyond.
