Celtics Make Critical Jayson Tatum Decision Before Game 2 Vs. Magic

The Boston Celtics took care of business and snagged a 1-0 series lead over the Orlando Magic to begin their first-round matchup, but the victory came at a cost: Jayson Tatum’s availability for Wednesday night’s Game 2 at TD Garden.

Tatum was ruled out less than an hour before tip-off, per a team-provided announcement, as the six-time All-Star continues to recover from a right distal radius bone bruise. Orlando’s Kentavious Caldwell-Pope committed a hard foul on Tatum during a dunk attempt in the fourth quarter, which the officials ruled a Flagrant 1 foul upon review. It didn’t rub Celtics teammates the right way, including veteran Al Horford, who rushed to Tatum’s rescue and felt the Magic crossed the line.

“Yes. Yes, there was something extra,” Horford told reporters Tuesday, per CLNS Media. “It was about the second or third time that KCP went after (Tatum) in that way, so yeah. It was all about checking on my guy and making sure he was fine, and it’s over with.”

If Caldwell-Pope and the Magic are going with an intentionally physical game plan to stump the Celtics, it’s nothing new. Tatum got brutally fouled while in the air for a rebound during Game 1 of Boston’s first-round series with the Miami Heat last season, too. The approach of going after Tatum and doing everything to take a physical toll on the 27-year-old isn’t innovative, it’s very copy-and-paste at this point.

Nevertheless, the Magic, who snuck into the playoffs as the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference, are also adamant about their stance. They believe they committed zero wrongdoing and that the Celtics have nothing to bark about.

“I didn’t see the flagrant. I think two guys were going for the block and I think the fall was probably what set it off more than anything,” Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley said before Game 2 at TD Garden, per Sports Illustrated’s Mason Williams. “… It’s playoff basketball and I don’t think that warranted what it was. I think the fall was probably what more so drew the attention to it being a flagrant more than anything.”