Jayson Tatum and the Celtics responded to Tuesday’s loss to the Hawks by drubbing the Nets 139-114 on Wednesday, outscoring Brooklyn by 20 in the second half.
Here are the takeaways.
Jayson Tatum nearly had an MVP-caliber triple-double.
Tatum nearly posted an eye-popping triple-double: 36 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists. He half-heartedly pursued a triple-double on his last few possessions, clearly aware of how many rebounds he had but also aware that pursuing triple-doubles is a bad look, and he came up respectably short with his substitute waiting on the sideline. When Joe Mazzulla asked if Tatum wanted to stay in and pursue the triple-double, Tatum declined.