Celtics
“He wanted to guard him, so he took that defensive challenge. That’s key for us to get to where we want to get to”
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Jayson Tatum personally asked for the opportunity to guard Anthony Edwards before the Celtics’ 118-115 win over the Timberwolves on Thursday, coach Joe Mazzulla said.
Edwards turned in a below-average performance, by his standards. The Celtics forced him to go to his left hand and threw occasional double-teams at him.
It appeared to throw the Minnesota star off of his game. He scored 15 points on 5-for-16 shooting and missed a clean look at the potential game-tying shot in the closing seconds.
Meanwhile, Tatum put on a clinic on the offensive end, pouring in a game-high 33 points to go with nine assists and eight rebounds against just two turnovers.
Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla praised Tatum, not just for his shotmaking, but his willingness to take on the challenge of guarding Edwards.
“He did great tonight. His ability to execute, really just fight for the shots that he wanted,” Mzzulla said. “Obviously he made some great shots. I just thought his intentionality on the offensive end was really good. He started the night out on Edwards which is something that he wanted. I thought he took on the challenge of that. So, he was good tonight.”
Asking for a particular defensive assignment is not something that Tatum always does, Mazzulla said.
But, with Jaylen Brown and Kristaps Porzingis out and the Celtics in need of a jolt after losing four of their previous seven games, Tatum wanted…