Kevin Garnett wasn’t a fan of Jayson Tatum lacking Recreation 7

“You’re about to go scrap and one in all your greatest scrappers ain’t right here. That’s a blow to the morale in right here.”

Kevin Garnett was “shocked” to see Jayson Tatum dominated out for Recreation 7 vs. the Sixers. AP Picture/Matt Krohn

Regardless of Jayson Tatum showing to tweak one thing in his leg throughout the Celtics’ Recreation 6 loss to the Sixers final week, each he and the group didn’t seem to sign any issues about his availability earlier than a decisive Recreation 7 on Might 2.

“Y’all in all probability noticed once I went to the again,” Tatum mentioned after Recreation 6. “So, I used to be on the bike. My leg was just a bit stiff once I got here out within the third quarter. However simply form of assessing the second, like, the sport was just a little out of attain. We took the starters out.”

“I imply, he mentioned he was taking part in proper?” Joe Mazzulla mentioned of Tatum the next day. “He’ll play.”

However, after Boston submitted a clear damage report on Friday, Tatum was deemed “questionable” on Saturday afternoon with “left knee stiffness” — roughly six hours earlier than tip-off at TD Backyard. Forward of the sport, Tatum was dominated out, with Boston finally falling to Philly, 109-100, in a season-ending defeat.

Talking on the most recent episode of the “KG Licensed” podcast with fellow Celtics nice Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett admitted that he was “shocked” to see Tatum dominated out from what turned out to be Boston’s closing recreation of the 12 months.

“I can let you know now that if the C’s thought I used to be taking part in and I got here in half-hour earlier than and mentioned I didn’t play, that will [expletive] shatter the locker room,” Garnett mentioned. “I’m simply speaking about now as professionals, they gotta modify, like, ‘Okay, who’s subsequent?’ You’re about to go scrap and one in all your greatest scrappers ain’t right here. That’s a blow to the morale in right here. That’s a blow to the camaraderie. I used to be shocked.”

“Once I noticed that, the primary two minutes of that recreation, I watched the bench,” Garnett added. “I watched morale. I simply needed to see how they have been going to react to that emotion. Was it going to uplift them? I feel they did the very best they might with the very best they’d. They left it on the market. Philly was simply the higher group.”

Regardless of Garnett’s feedback, Tatum was truly dominated out nicely forward of tip-off, with the ultimate damage report dropping two hours earlier than the beginning of the sport. Even when Tatum’s availability wasn’t precisely unsure in Boston’s locker room proper earlier than warmups, his absence was felt in opposition to the Sixers.

Regardless of the frustrations rooted in a first-round exit the place Boston initially held a 3-1 collection lead in opposition to Philly, Pierce pushed again in opposition to a few of Garnett’s frustrations — noting that taking part in Tatum in that recreation wasn’t well worth the danger, particularly coming off a ruptured Achilles tendon final Might.

“They made a long-term resolution,” Pierce mentioned of Boston’s resolution to sit down Tatum. “We’ve seen it occur too many occasions. … We’ve seen it occur with too many guys who handled calf ache or knee [pain]. … That’s what they’re doing.”

Chatting with reporters final week, Tatum mentioned that the Celtics made the decision to sit down Tatum out, noting that he felt as if he may have continued to play had Boston punched its ticket to the subsequent spherical of the playoffs.

“Skilled some tightness again there,” Tatum mentioned of his knee. “It was simply unlucky timing nevertheless it was, I suppose, just a little bit to be anticipated. I used to be away for ten-and-a-half months after which I’m again and I’m taking part in each different day.”

“I’m taking part in 36-40 minutes, so it’s common that one thing would come up. It was simply form of robust as a result of rehab was going so nicely the whole time. I suppose it was form of inevitable that I must cope with one thing and it simply got here on the worst time.”