Celtics

Tatum caught fire from three-point range and Boston put New York away early.

After a lackluster shooting performance during the previous postseason, Jayson Tatum has put in a lot of work to reshape his jump shot in the offseason.

He looked completely at ease as he bombarded the new Knicks with three-pointers during the Celtics’ opening 132–109 win over New York at TD Garden Tuesday night.

Tatum set the tone by drilling and completing six of his first nine three-pointers 8-for-11 from deep and 14-for-18 overall. He scored a game-high 37 points and posted a double-double.

The parts of his game that had never diminished during last year’s march to the title also emerged fully intact. He consistently fed his teammates and racked up 10 assists. The Celtics defense overwhelmed New York from the jump, taking a 19-point halftime lead and putting the game out of reach early.

While Tatum was focused, committed and making his shots, the rest of the team followed suit. They created an open look by swinging the ball efficiently across the field.

They buried ten first-quarter threes and never looked back. At one point, with two minutes left in the third quarter, the team’s three-point shooting percentage was higher than its overall field goal percentage, with both hovering just below 60 percent.

It was a dominant performance against the Knicks, who finished second in the Eastern Conference standings and invested heavily in their roster in hopes of chasing the Celtics.

New York re-signed OG Anunoby to a huge deal, traded five first-round picks for Mikal Bridges and sent Julius Randle and Donte Divencenzo to Minnesota in exchange for center Karl-Anthony Towns.

Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla was asked about the Knicks’ signings before the game. He said the ‘enemy’ had become stronger. He was so locked in that he remembered the exact date of a certain transaction.

The Celtics showed no evidence of a lack of intensity the night they raised their record 18th championship flag and received their championship rings.

They crushed one of their conference’s most formidable foes in front of a raucous home crowd and Celtic legends including Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Bob Cousy.

Tatum knew he had to do something about his jumper after shooting a career-low 28.3 percent during last year’s playoffs. He told reporters earlier this month that he had made a few mechanical adjustments, including keeping his shoulders forward to add strength.

He started the new season with fire and that led to the Celtics torching the Knicks.

Khari A. Thompson

Sports reporter

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Khari Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Khari covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss.

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