Jayson Tatum is ice-cold from three-point range. Luckily Derrick White is picking up the slack for him.
Derrick White knocking 'em down in Game 1
— NBA (@NBA) May 8, 2024
His 5th triple of the game... Boston leads by double digits on TNT. pic.twitter.com/AA95bTKmUd
White continued his hot shooting from deep, hitting his seventh three-pointer of the game late in the third quarter. He's now gone 28-for-55 from behind the arc in the playoffs, making over half of his shots at a stunningly-high clip.
Through three quarters in Game 1, he had 25 points and Boston had an 89-77 lead.
The Celtics need White's red-hot shooting because Jayson Tatum's outside shot had abandoned him. He was 0-for-5 from deep and 5-for-17 overall.
It's part of a rough trend for Boston's superstar, who is shooting 9-for-36 (25%) from three-point range in the playoffs.
But what makes the Celtics so dangerous is that their guards are more than capable of picking up a slumping Tatum. Jaylen Brown had 24 points through three quarters. All three of Boston's starting guards — White, Brown and Jrue Holiday — shot 23-for-40, more than covering for Tatum.
Cleveland may have gone into the series keying on Boston's All-Stars. But they're going to have to adjust to cover White, or he's going to shoot them out of the playoffs.
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