Who are Celtics' most ‘clutch' players? Breakdown includes a few surprises

Share

The 2019-20 Boston Celtics boast a very balanced offensive attack: They have four players averaging more than 17 points per game and are the only NBA team with three players averaging north of 20 points per game.

But who do the Celtics go to when the game is on the line?

We enlisted Boston Sports Info (@BostonSportsInf on Twitter) to crunch the numbers on the Celtics' "clutch" scoring stats, defined as the shots they attempt and make with under five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter or overtime that would either tie the game or give Boston the lead.

LIVE stream the Celtics all season and get the latest news and analysis on all of your teams from NBC Sports Boston by downloading the My Teams App.

Here are the results for the Celtics' top six scorers:

A few observations:

-- Jayson Tatum by far is Boston's top option late in games, with more than double the attempts of the next-closest Celtic.

Outside Gordon Hayward, he's also Boston's most effective option at 57.1 percent clutch shooting, including a 10-for-14 clip on clutch 2-point field goals.

-- Perhaps the Celtics should feed Hayward more. The Celtics forward has missed just one clutch attempt this season but has only taken four.

-- Considering the "Cardiac Kemba" nickname he earned in college, Kemba Walker's clutch stats are a bit eye-opening. The All-Star point guard has struggled in crunch time this season after being the Charlotte Hornets' go-to fourth quarter bucket-getter for years.

The Celtics had better hope Walker finds his groove soon: Boston has lost each of its last four games decided by five points or fewer and now is 6-12 in such games this season, per Basketball Reference.

Sounds like the C's need to rediscover their "clutch gene" Tuesday night when they visit Indiana to play the Pacers.

Don't miss NBC Sports Boston's coverage of Pacers-Celtics, which begins Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. with Celtics Pregame Live, followed by tip-off at 7 p.m. You can also stream on the MyTeams App.

Contact Us