Jay King wrote about the Celtics' (and really Tatum's) tendency to play too slowly in the clutch. The Cavaliers game was an example,
https://theathletic.com/5321461/2024/03/07/celtics-cavaliers-jayson-tatum-loss/
They received the ball trailing by a single point with 19.1 seconds left, but
Jayson Tatum waited 11 seconds to even dribble off a ball screen. He didn’t draw a foul, which was later overturned, until 0.7 seconds remained on the game clock. His shot attempt almost certainly didn’t leave enough time for a potential putback by one of his teammate or for the Celtics to foul
Clevelandand get another chance if it missed.
With the Celtics down by a point, this was not a situation that called for running the clock down that far (a tie game is when that makes sense). Tatum was slow to get started, did not create a good look for himself as the defense collpased on him, and passed up or did not see/look for a wide open Derrick White who had a much better look than him.
KIng notes that the Celtics blew a playoff game against Philly for the same reason.
Though Tatum didn’t dribble up court against Philadelphia, he showed no urgency getting the ball so he could start his attack. Just like Tuesday, he ran a ball screen with
Derrick White to hunt the smallest defender on the court. Just like Tuesday, Tatum waited too long to begin that action. Against the 76ers, he threw a kickout pass to
Marcus Smart that did not leave enough time to release a potential game-winner. Forget an extra chance. The Celtics didn’t even produce one. At least they got one against the Cavaliers.
Maybe this is why Tatum didn't look for White against Cleveland, although he did have the time and Whiite is a better guy to take a last second shot than Smart.
To me, this alone kills Tatum's MVP case. Not the one play but the recurring pattern. Everyone is going sometimes to miss a shot or make a bad play in a key situation. But how can Tatum after 7 years still not know that down by one in a close game is a time to play fast? And while Tatum has become quite good at finding the right play when teams double him, there are some ways teams send help that confuse him. He needs to either figure things out or the Celtics need to put the ball in the hands of White and Holiday more.
He did do better against Phoenix, which was encouraging. When the Suns doubled him late off a screen, he hit Holiday on the short roll, and when Horford's man rotated to the open Holiday, Holiday hit a wide open Horford in the corner for a three. On the next play, the Celtics ran a similar look and when Phoenix didn't send help at Tatum, Tatum - still guarded well by Durant - drove for a layup. These weren't final seconds plays but the game was very much on the line here and the Celtics' (and Tatum's) execution was right where it needs to be.