Jayson Tatum Met Celtics at Team Hotel Ahead of Game 6 vs. Knicks Amid Achilles Injury
Injured Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum met his teammates at their New York hotel ahead of Friday night's must-win Game 6 against the Knicks, according to NBC Sports Boston's Chris Forsberg.
"We didn't talk about basketball at all," Payton Pritchard told reporters. "That stuff is bigger than basketball now. It's seeing how he is as a person, how he's dealing with stuff. The basketball side, we'll handle that. But just want to check-in as a friend."
The Knicks hold a 3-2 second-round series lead after the Celtics staved off elimination with a 127-102 win in Wednesday's Game 5 in Boston.
Tatum is out for the postseason after suffering a ruptured right Achilles tendon during Monday's Game 4 in New York.
He underwent surgery on the injury Tuesday. The Celtics said he is "expected to make a full recovery."
Celtics guard Payton Pritchard said it was "really good seeing him" after arriving in New York for Game 6.
"Seemed like he was in really good spirits, and stuff... it's just good, when you see one of your brothers, your teammates, going through a situation like that, you just want to be there and comfort, anything he needs," Pritchard said (h/t Celtics on CLNS.)
Tatum was injured late in his biggest performance of the playoffs so far, a 42-point outing in the Celtics' Game 4 loss in New York.
Derrick White stepped up for Game 5 with a game-high 34 points, while Jaylen Brown posted 26 and added a playoff career-high 12 assists.
Out of the 295 teams to face a 3-1 series deficit in NBA playoff history, only 13 have come back to win the series. The Celtics face steep odds to become the 14th with their central playmaker and leading scorer on the sidelines.
On the other hand, the Knicks have struggled to close out series at Madison Square Garden.
As noted by NBC Sports Boston's Dick Lipe (h/t Darren Hartwell), the Knicks are 0-5 in the team's last five opportunities to close out a series at home. The Celtics, on the other hand, are 5-0 in the team's last five road elimination games.
The visitors will hope Tatum rejoining his team can help motivate the Celtics to push a Game 7 with a Friday night victory in Manhattan. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. ET.
