Playing well against the Los Angeles Lakers is a pretty good trait for any Boston Celtics player, and Jayson Tatum definitely has it.
The Celtics forward scored 44 points on 15-of-29 shooting with nine rebounds and six assists.
In fact, his 44 points are the most ever by a Celtics player against the Lakers in Los Angeles, breaking the previous mark of 41 set by Hall of Famer Paul Pierce in March of 2001.
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The two most important points Tatum scored came toward the end of regulation when he hit a tough jumper over LeBron James to tie the score 118-118 and eventually force overtime.
The Celtics outscored the Lakers 12-8 in the OT period to secure a 122-118 win in a game where both teams blew double-digit second-half leads.
Tatum has averaged 24 points in 11 career games against the Lakers since his rookie campaign in 2017-18. He's also had some monster performances against the Celtics' biggest rival, and Tuesday night was the latest example.
Tatum, along with Jaylen Brown, turned what could have been one of the Celtics' worst losses in a long time into a memorable win.
Boston Celtics
Now the Celtics return to Boston for a seven-game homestand, highlighted by a Christmas Day matchup versus the Milwaukee Bucks.