How Jayson Tatum bounced back from his worst 3-point shooting. night of the season

Celtics

Tatum went 0-10 from 3-point range Friday against Washington. He bounced back Sunday against the T-Wolves.

Even MVP candidates have terrible point shooting throughout the season.

Friday’s contest against the Wizards simply wasn’t Jayson Tatum’s night. He shot 0 of 10 from 3-point range and 6 of 19 from the field.

Overall, the Celtics got off to a slow start and let the Wizards hang around for too long, but were eventually able to overcome Tatum’s night off. They beat Washington by 12.

Tatum bounced back against the Timberwolves at TD Garden on Sunday, hitting five of his 12 3-point attempts.

When asked if he had changed his daily routine at all to cope, Tatum shook his head and said no.

“Sometimes the (expletive) just doesn’t go through,” Tatum said. “I didn’t do anything extra. Yesterday we had a day off. I relaxed with Deuce all day. Just came looking forward to playing again. “I know I’m not going to be 0-for-10 tonight, so it all balances out.”

Tatum ended up shooting 8-of-21 from the field, still below his season average of 44 percent.

But he’s found more success on the outside, something he worked hard on after struggling with his 3-point shooting during the Celtics’ postseason run to a championship last summer.

Tatum’s field goal percentage, three-point percentage and free throw percentage this season are slightly below his career averages, but that’s a fairly small sample size considering we’re less than a quarter through the season.

Tatum, now in his eighth season, says the experience has given him the opportunity to put the shooting slump in perspective.

“I think earlier in my career this would have bothered me a lot more,” Tatum said. “You just realize you have to play a lot more basketball. So many games. In those moments, it feels like you’re the only one missing shots, but every great player, every great shooter has slumps or nights where he can’t make a shot.

“They always bounce back or respond,” he added. “I think throughout my career, those moments and those tough nights on set became easier to deal with and live with as I got older.”

Hari A. Thompson

Sports reporter

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Khari Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Hari covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Mississippi.

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