Jayson Tatum explains how he intends to overcome his shooting slump in the NBA Finals / News - Basketnews.com

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Jayson Tatum, one of the best pure scorers in the NBA in the regular season, saw his efficiency is becoming an issue for Boston's offense during these NBA Finals.

Player of the Game EFF 36 Stephen Curry Points 43 Accuracy 14-26 Rebounds 10 Assists 4

The All-Star forward went just 8/23 from the field in the 97-107 loss to the Warriors in Game 4 on Friday night. It was third game this series that Tatum shot under 40% from the field and a lot of those struggles are coming inside the arc.

He went just 4/15 from the two-point range in Game 4, dropping his shooting average in the series to 33% overall and 27% from a close range. He also turned the ball over six times and tallied only three points in the fourth quarter. That's when Boston needed its star most as the Golden State Warriors ended the game on a 17-3 run.

Celtic's coach Ime Udoka believes his star player is attempting to draw whistles on a lot of his attempts into the paint rather than finishing.

"At times, he's looking for fouls," Udoka said postgame. "They are a team that loads up in certain games. He's finding the outlets. Shooting over two, three guys. That's the balance of being aggressive and picking your spots and doing what he's done in previous games, which is kicked it out and got wide-open looks.

That's the ongoing theme so to speak, him getting to the basket, being a scorer as well as a playmaker. They do a good job with their rotations. Sometimes hunting fouls instead of going to finish. I've seen that in a few games so far."

Celtics guard Marcus Smart was asked whether he's been sharing any words of encouragement for his teammate.

"Yeah, we all are," Smart answered.

"We just constantly let him know keep going. This isn't your first time being in a slump. Won't be the last time. You got to figure it out. We trust you, we believe in you. This is what you're made for. Jayson has to figure it out. We have to do a good job of helping him.

Points this season

46%110,7Points made:110,7Accuracy:46,3%Place in standings:14Record max:145Record min:82Best scorer:Jayson TatumTeamNBAStatisticsSchedule

"But, you know, him being the player he is, these are the moments where he has to come alive and figure it out. He will. We don't know when it is, but we're sure it's going to happen soon, we're ready for it, and we're here to back him up."

The Warriors were one of the best defensive teams in the regular season and forced Boston into bad habits with their increased intensity in Game 4. With little margin of error left now for Boston with homecourt advantage given away, the Celtics are going to need more from their best player to clinch their first championship since 2008.

Tatum gave some kudos to the Warriors for forcing him into some of those struggles before acknowledging he has to make some changes.

"I give them credit, they're a great team," Tatum said.

"They're playing well. They got a game plan, things like that. But it’s on me. I got to be better. I know I’m impacting the game in other ways, but I got to be more efficient, shoot the ball better, finish at the rim better. I take accountability for that."

Tatum seems to take his coach's advice, not forcing the ball into a crowd in the paint when he has opportunities.

"What I would say is don't be opposed to taking twos," Tatum said. "Some pull-up jumpers, some of those things, instead of going all the way to the rim. It doesn't have to be either/or as far as that.

We talked about the balance, how much we rely on him to score and get other guys involved.

Sometimes that balance leads to taking some shots or over-penetrating when he has a clean pull-up or two. Nothing wrong with the floater, mid-range pull-up to get yourself going, especially when the crowd is sitting there at the rim."

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