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History suggests Tatum is primed for a bounce-back Game 3 vs. Knicks originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum has been criticized the last couple days for his performance through two games in the Eastern Conference semifinals versus the New York Knicks.

And the criticism is mostly fair. Tatum has not played to his superstar standard in this series, and it’s one of the reasons why the Knicks have a surprising 2-0 lead.

Tatum has scored a total of 36 points on 12-for-42 shooting (5-for-20 on 3-pointers) with eight turnovers in two games. He’s also shooting 1-for-12 (0-for-7 from 3-point range) in the fourth quarter. Tatum knows he must be better.

“I take full ownership for the way that I’ve played in this series,” Tatum told reporters at a press conference Thursday. “Can’t sugarcoat anything. I need to be better. And I expect to be a lot better.”

The good news for the Celtics is that the chances of Tatum bouncing back with a stellar Game 3 are pretty good. The reason for that is recent history.

Simply put: When Tatum is under pressure and the Celtics have their backs against the wall, he has delivered more often than not, especially on the road. He has eight 30-point road games since the start of the 2023 postseason.

In the first round against the Orlando Magic, Tatum scored 37 points with 14 rebounds in a Game 4 win that gave the Celtics a 3-1 series lead. Tatum scored 16 points in the fourth quarter.

It was one of many great Tatum games on the road when his team really needed it.

The best example was probably Game 6 of the 2022 conference semifinals against the Milwaukee Bucks. Tatum scored 46 points with nine rebounds in Milwaukee to save the C’s from elimination. Boston won the series in Game 7.

He did something similar a year later in Game 6 of the conference semifinals against the Philadelphia 76ers with 16 points in the fourth quarter to save Boston from elimination. The C’s won the series in Game 7.

During last season’s run to an NBA championship, Tatum averaged 27 points, 10 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game on the road in the postseason. In the 2023 playoffs, Tatum put up 26.4 points, 11.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game on the road. In the 2022 playoffs, Tatum scored 27.1 points per game away from home.

Tatum’s stellar play away from TD Garden is one of the primary reasons why the Celtics have a 22-9 road playoff record since the beginning of 2022. It’s the best road playoff record of any team during that time. And if the Celtics are going to overcome this 0-2 deficit and eliminate the Knicks, they have to win at least two games on the road.

The Celtics have won four consecutive games at Madison Square Garden and five of their last six in New York since the start of the 2022-23 campaign. Tatum scored 40 points against the Knicks in a 27-point win on Feb. 8. He scored 32 points and hit some clutch shots in the overtime win on April 8.

Tatum’s record on the road in big playoff games speaks for itself. That’s why Celtics fans should feel confident going into Game 3. This is the type of scenario where Tatum often steps up and gives the Celtics a great performance when they absolutely need it.

Mazzulla provides more clarity on Porzingis' illness, status for Game 3 originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

How much production can the Boston Celtics get from Kristaps Porzingis going forward?

That’s been a significant storyline during Boston’s second-round playoff series vs. the New York Knicks, and with good reason: Porzingis was excellent against his former team during the regular season but looked like a shell of himself in Games 1 and 2 due to an illness that limited him to fewer than 15 minutes in both contests.

The Celtics haven’t provided much detail on the nature of Porzingis’ illness — they termed it a “non-Covid illness” when he exited Game 1 in the second quarter — but head coach Joe Mazzulla shared a bit more insight Friday.

“We do know: He had the illness, and he has the effects of that illness when it’s his fatigue and his breathing, and he’s doing everything he can to give us what he has,” Mazzulla said during his interview with 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Zolak & Bertrand.

Porzingis missed 11 games in a 14-game span from late February to mid-March due to an upper respiratory illness, and it appears he’s still dealing with lingering effects of that illness, particularly in regard to his conditioning.

“It’s an illness, and what’s impacted is his fatigue and his breathing,” Mazzulla added. “So, he’s just working through those things.”

After going scoreless over 13 minutes in Game 1 prior to his departure, Porzingis looked a bit better in Game 2, playing 14 minutes and contributing eight points on 3 of 5 shooting. He’s still nowhere near full strength, though, and admitted as much to reporters after Wednesday’s Game 2.

“I’ve had ups and downs up until this point, and just now had a big crash,” Porzingis said. “My energy, my everything hasn’t been good.”

Still, Mazzulla is hoping that two full days off can help Porzingis rest up to contribute more minutes in Saturday’s Game 3.

“We hope that he’ll continue to get better and better with these two days off,” Mazzulla said. “We hope that he’ll be better, because we need him for us to be at our best.

“He’s in here every day; he’s doing what he can. I thought he gave us — those 13 or 14 minutes (in Game 2) were good, and hopefully we can build on that with a couple of days off.”

The Celtics need all they can get from Porzingis at the moment; they’ve gone 25 for 100 from 3-point range — an NBA record for the most missed 3s in a span of two playoff games — and are averaging almost 20 points below their regular-season scoring average as a team.

Porzingis is an offensive cheat code for Boston when healthy with his ability to hit 3-pointers and exploit mismatches in the post. Mazzulla sounds optimistic that Porzingis can increase his workload from Game 2 after two days off, but the big man’s health is still a major question mark entering Game 3.

Saturday’s game tips off at 3:30 p.m. ET, and NBC Sports Boston’s coverage begins at 2:30 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live.

Timberwolves investigating ‘racially charged comments' at Draymond originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Draymond Green’s postgame comments raised some eyebrows after accusing the NBA of having an “agenda” against him following the Warriors’ Game 2 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday night at Target Center.

The Timberwolves on Friday morning released a statement that provided a bit more clarity on what occurred off the court that might have led to Green’s remarks.

Minnesota Timberwolves Statement on Fan Ejection: pic.twitter.com/vJvAqLSz7b

— Timberwolves PR (@Twolves_PR) May 9, 2025

A video shared to social media by a fan at the game showed Green going back and forth with a fan or fans while he was keeping warm on the stationary bike in the tunnel during the fourth quarter.

There has yet to be any more information on the second person referenced in the Timberwolves’ statement, but as they noted, they will continue to investigate the matter.

“I’m not an angry Black man,” Green told reporters after Golden State’s 117-93 loss. “I’m a very successful, educated Black man, with a great family. And I’m great at basketball. Great at what I do. The agenda to try to keep making me look like an angry Black man is crazy. I’m sick of it. It’s ridiculous.”

Green was assessed a technical foul in the second quarter for hitting Naz Reid in the face, but given his passionate postgame comments, there had to be more to the story.

Details of that might or might not unveil as time passes, but Green and the Warriors know their focus is on basketball.

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Shams: Steph's injury return not until Game 6 ‘at the earliest' originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Steph Curry’s presence was missed in the Warriors’ Game 2 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference semifinals Thursday night at Target Center.

He will miss Games 3 and 4 at Chase Center before his Grade 1 left hamstring strain is reevaluated just before Game 5 on Wednesday returns to Minnesota. While Curry spoke to reporters before Game 2 and indicated he didn’t have a target return date, ESPN’s Shams Charania shared some more intel on the sharpshooter’s potential return timeline.

“It’s a hamstring strain. You know and everyone in there knows, a hamstring strain is not an injury you play with,” Charania said Friday morning on “The Pat McAfee Show.” “He’s really been limited to just doing treatment. … My understanding is it’s probably not going to be at any point until Game 6 at the earliest for Steph Curry.”

That wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world for the Warriors, assuming they can win at least one game at home in either Game 3 or Game 4. Obviously, you want to win as many games as you can, but if a rested and healthy Curry returns to Game 6 in San Francisco, you at least give yourself a chance to force a Game 7.

Curry sustained the injury early in the second quarter of Game 1 and immediately was ruled out for the remainder of the contest. The injury is the first muscle strain of Curry’s 16-season NBA career, but hamstring injuries specifically require extra need for caution.

“It’s going to be a very safe approach the Warriors are going to take with this,” Charania added.

"Steph Curry has really been limited to just doing treatment and he's gonna be reevaluated on Wednesday..

My understanding is that he could be back for game six at the earliest" ~ @ShamsCharania#PMSLivepic.twitter.com/ppvbo0zAgn

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) May 9, 2025

There is a four-day gap between Games 5 and 6 due to the WNBA Golden State Valkyries opening their season at Chase Center on Friday, May 16. Game 5 is scheduled for May 14. Game 6, if needed, is scheduled for May 18.

Of course, this could all change depending on how the series shakes out. The Warriors stepped up massively when Curry left with the injury in Game 1. They folded in a Game 2 blowout loss. The series now heads to the Bay tied 1-1.

All eyes will be on Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green to put the team on their backs in Curry’s absence. Because if and when he returns, the basketball world knows it’s a whole different ball game.

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