BOSTON – Like almost every kid, Celtics star Jayson Tatum envisioned himself hitting game-winning shots as a kid.

But he certainly wasn’t dreaming of what happened minutes before he sank a 29-foot, buzzer-beating 3-pointer to lift the Celtics to a 126-123 victory over the Toronto Raptors at TD Garden on Saturday night.

The five-time All-Star had a perfect opportunity to end the game as regulation time expired. He lost his defender around the free throw line, leaving him with a wide open jumper. But Tatum made a shot that hit the entire backboard.

That brutal miss could have left Tatum hesitant when faced with the same situation in the extra frame, but he instead seized the moment.

“It felt good to finally hit one,” Tatum said. “Obviously after the terrible miss I had at the end of regulation, it felt good to bounce back and shoot for the win.”

Tatum didn’t need a pep talk after failing to land the final blow against the pesky Raptors in the fourth quarter. He knew that with the five-minute overtime there would be more opportunities for him to impact the game and get a win for the Celtics.

“I have a lot of problems in life, trust has never been one of them,” Tatum said. “I work too hard at my craft, I’ve played too much basketball to ever doubt the next shot, whether it’s an in-and-out miss or missing the entire rim. I know what I am capable of and you always believe that the next one will succeed.

Tatum hasn’t had as many moments as the ones he had against the Raptors. He hit a game-winning layup with no time left on the clock in the first game of Boston’s 2022 playoff run. He also scored a three-pointer off Giannis Antetokounmpo in the 2020-21 season opener, but there was still 0.4 seconds left after the ball went through the hoop.

Tatum watched his basketball idol in Kobe Bryant deliver buzzer-beating baskets and knows he can’t avoid such situations when they arise.

“I’ve never been afraid of the outcome, good or bad,” Tatum said. “My favorite players that I grew up watching had moments like this where they made them and missed them. But no matter how the game went, they were always willing to be there at that moment. Be brave, I think, in such moments.”