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That explains a lot.
Per TNT’s Jared Greenberg, Jayson Tatum suffered a groin injury in the first game of the NBA Playoffs. That could partly explain his uncharacteristically bad outing in Game 1 in Brooklyn.
Tatum finished the night against the Nets with 22 points, hitting just six of his twenty shots. He didn’t hit a field goal in the second half, but chipped in three rebounds, five assists, a steal, and a block in the loss.
Here’s the flagrant foul from Kevin Durant when Tatum possibly pulled his groin:
“They were physical. I felt like I had some good looks, Tatum said in his post-game presser. “Tough shooting night. Give them credit. They competed. I just felt like I could get some to fall down like I wanted to and it was tough, but Game 2.”
So far tonight, Tatum continues to struggle. He’s made only two of his ten field goal attempts with two turnover and appears to be a little gimpy on the groin despite “feeling much better tonight.”