The Boston Celtics made a statement to the rest of the NBA with their thrilling, 141-133 double-overtime victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night.
The C's went toe-to-toe with one of the championship favorites to solidify their third-place standing in the Eastern Conference as the All-Star break begins. The star of Boston's victory was third-year forward Jayson Tatum, who scored a game-high 39 points on 14-for-23 shooting (5-for-10 from 3-point range). Tatum took over the game in crunch time, pouring in 17 points during the fourth quarter and overtime periods, in addition to stellar 1-on-1 defense.
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He was matched up against Kawhi Leonard throughout the later stages of the night and outplayed the Clippers superstar at both ends of the court. Leonard scored just five points in the fourth quarter and overtime, and Tatum's exceptional defense was the primary reason for those struggles.
Here's some of the best Twitter reactions to the Tatum vs. Leonard matchup.