No excuses: Celtics should still be able to beat the Knicks

It is no secret how much Jayson Tatum idolizes Kobe Bryant. He has worn a purple armband emblazoned with Kobe's number 24 during a game seven of a playoff series against the Miami Heat. He showed up to a Celtics-Lakers game wearing a T-shirt with a picture of Kobe Bryant wearing a Celtics' shirt which Kobe wore during a pre-draft workout with Boston in 1996.

Kobe Bryant died, tragically, in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020. That didn't stop Tatum from texting "I got you today" to Kobe's old cell phone number before that same playoff game against the Heat. Such was his love for the Lakers' legend.

It is no small irony that Tatum passed Bryant as recent as this past Saturday for second place – only behind LeBron James – for most playoff points in NBA history by a player 27 or younger.

The irony is not that Tatum passed his idol just a couple of days ago. The irony is that on Monday night, Tatum may have suffered the same serious injury that took years off of Bryant's career.

On April 12, 2013, Kobe Bryant ruptured his Achilles tendon. At age 34, many speculated his Hall of Fame career had come to an end. But Bryant wasn't going to go out like that. In typical Kobe Bryant fashion, he worked his ass off and made his triumphant return to the court on December 8, 2013.

That's why – love him or hate him – everyone respected Kobe Bryant.

Kobe would play three more seasons after the injury, but he was never the same. He averaged 18.9 points per game over that span, shooting 36.6% from the field, and 28.5% from three – all far below his career numbers of 25.0, 44.7%, and 32.9%, respectively. The year he got hurt he averaged 27.3 points per game.

While we await official word on Tatum's injury which happened late in a Game 4 loss to the New York Knicks, many fear the worst. His ankle didn't twist which rules out a severely sprained ankle. The sudden step and hyperextension of his heel is too reminiscent of other times athletes have gone down with Achilles' injuries – Dan Marino, Vinny Testaverde, Joe Burrow, Aaron Rodgers, Kevin Durant, and Kobe Bryant.

Tatum's reaction to the injury – on the court and as he was being wheeled in a wheelchair to the locker room – pretty much seals the deal on the diagnosis. Unless he is pulling an ultimate Paul Pierce or Mac Jones-level Academy Award performance, we won't be seeing Jayson Tatum on a basketball court for a long time. And when we do, odds are he won't be the same player.

While the injury is horrific for Tatum, the Celtics, as a team, still have some basketball left to be played. Immediately after Tatum hit the deck, social media was ablaze with "The season is over" posts.

Why should the season be over?

The Celtics finished ten games ahead of the Knicks this year. New York played around .500 ball over the last 23 games of the regular season. They struggled to get past the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the playoffs.

Jalen Brunson is the Knicks' best player. Do you think he would start on the Celtics? Would he even be the sixth man on the Celtics if everyone were fully healthy?

And Karl-Anthony Towns? What has he ever won? He is one of the softest seven-footers you will ever see. Punch him in the mouth once and you will see him fold like a house of cards.

This is when head coach Joe Mazzulla has to prove himself.

Anyone can look like a great coach when they have two of the best, young talented players in the NBA playing alongside each other. Support those two guys with some of the best three-point shooters in the NBA in Derrick White and Payton Pritchard, mix in some veteran leadership with Jrue Holiday and Al Horford, and a freak physical specimen like Kristaps Porzingis – who can't win as a coach with that complement of players running on autopilot every night?

Mazzulla has gotten away with letting his guys loaf around all season. I'd argue he has been like that the whole time he has been the head coach of the Celtics. Just by having all his players show up to the arena, his team automatically wins three-fourths of their games.

He hasn't needed to call timeouts in key points of games or when other teams go on runs. He knows his team has always been able to figure it out on their own.

However, now it is time for him to get off his rocking chair. Now it is time for Mazzulla to do some coaching. More importantly, it is time for him to do some inspiring. He has to make sure his team doesn't fall into the same trap that everyone on social media already has.

Mazzulla has to convince his team the season is not over. The Celtics need to win three straight games for their season to continue. Two of those games are at home. How many times have the Celtics won three games in a row this year?

The Celtics are 8-2 this year without Tatum. They are 8-0 without Tatum against teams not named the Magic. Five of those wins were by more than ten points. Losing Tatum is a blow to the team, but it is, by no means, a death blow.

A player like Payton Pritchard has been waiting years for this kind of an opportunity to show what he can do in the playoffs in front of a national audience. Of course he wouldn't want to see anyone get hurt, but that doesn't mean he isn't eager to get his shot. He is one player who I know is ready to step out of the shadows and flourish with the increased spotlight.

The question is everyone else. Jaylen Brown has been playing on a bum knee since the All-Star break. Porzingis continues to battle a mysterious respiratory infection. Sam Hauser hasn't played in a few games due to an ankle injury. Holiday was hobbled against Orlando with a hamstring injury.

But this is not a time for excuses. It would be easy for the Celtics to pack their bags and go home and say, "Woe is us." That is unacceptable, though. I, for one, will not give this team a pass.

This team is far too talented, even without Tatum, to not beat this Knicks team. They will have to adjust their style of play. They won't have Tatum to handle the ball at the top of the key and create shots while everyone stands in the corners of the court just in case the ball comes their way.

Everyone will need to contribute. – even someone like Luke Kornet. Why not mix in Neemias Queta for three or four minutes to rough up Towns? Get creative, Joe.

Schematically, there will have to be more ball movement. They will have to, actually, run plays. They will need to focus more on defense. They will have to be more aggressive on the boards. They will need to be more selective on their shot selection. They will have to not let up if they get a lead.

Just showing up at the arena won't win them games anymore. Now they need to show up to the arena wanting to win. Now they will need to put in the work. Can they flip the switch that quickly? They should.

History doesn't record championships for other teams with asterisks because the favorite team to win during the season suffered injuries to their key players at the end.

There are no excuses.