Jayson Tatum has message for critics after Celtics’ blowout loss

May 7, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) smiles before game one of the second round of the 2024 NBA playoffs against the Cleveland Cavaliers at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

The Boston Celtics looked completely flat in their home loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday night, but Jayson Tatum does not seem all that concerned about the disappointing performance.

After they dominated the Cavs with a 25-point victory in Game 1 on Tuesday, the Celtics were blown out by nearly the same margin in their 118-94 loss in Game 2 at TD Garden in Boston, Mass. The poor showing led to some talk about how the Celtics will not be able to get over the championship hump if they lose focus the way they did on Thursday.

Following the game, Tatum had a message for some of those critics.

“We get it, right? The world thinks we’re never supposed to lose. We’re supposed to win every game by 25. It’s just not gonna be like that all the time,” Tatum said. “We don’t expect it to be easy. This is a good team we’re playing. It’s the second round of the playoffs, so it’s gonna be fun the rest of the series and especially come Saturday. We’ve bounced back plenty of times. I think we lost 16 games this year, so I like to think that we responded pretty well the times that we did lose.”

Tatum was then asked if fans might be spoiled after the way the Celtics played during the regular season. He said some of the narratives don’t match the credit Boston receives — or lack thereof.

“The idea that we have a superteam, it’s two-fold, right?” Tatum said. “We didn’t have the Coach of the Year. We didn’t have the MVP. We only had two All-Stars, so you can say we’re a superteam but we didn’t get rewarded like we are.”

"We didn't have MVP, we only had two All-Stars… You say we're a super team, but we didn't get rewarded like we are"

Jayson Tatum responds to concerns with the Celtics after their Game 2 loss. He says the Celtics aren't perfect, but he's confident they'll respond pic.twitter.com/Ld57FU0WVc

— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) May 10, 2024

The stars are seemingly aligned for the Tatum-led Celtics to win an NBA title. Jimmy Butler’s injury helped Boston make easy work out of the Miami Heat in the first round. Giannis Antetokounmpo was also hurt and could not play in the opening round, and the Milwaukee Bucks were knocked out. Even in the Western Conference, the defending champion Denver Nuggets are down 2-0 and in serious trouble against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Celtics can probably afford to take a night off against the Cavs, but they might not get away with that in the Eastern Conference Finals or NBA Finals. That is why fans overreact when a team that is supposed to be that much better than the competition gets blown out at home.