Jayson Tatum off mark in clutch as Celtics fall to Nuggets - ESPN

DENVER — For the second time this week — and for the second time this season against the Denver Nuggets — Jayson Tatum found the ball in his hands with a chance to put his Boston Celtics ahead in the closing seconds.

Once again, Tatum didn't take advantage of his opportunity.

With the Celtics down by two, Tatum missed a wide-open corner 3-pointer with 45 seconds to go, capping an ugly performance on what turned out to be Boston's final chance to take the lead on the night. After the miss, Nikola Jokic finished off a 32-point, 12-rebound, 11-assist triple-double with a lob to Aaron Gordon for a dunk that sealed Denver's 115-109 victory.

«That corner 3, it was a good shot,» Tatum said. «I thought it was going in. We had some opportunities.»

That Boston (48-14) even had a chance to win was sort of remarkable, given how listless Tatum was throughout. He finished with 15 points on 5-for-13 shooting to go along with four rebounds and eight assists. In addition to that wide-open missed 3, Tatum also had a couple of crucial turnovers in transition in the fourth quarter, made several passive drives to the rim and was generally not as involved as he normally is.

«I think with the dynamic of our team, when other guys kind of got it going in a rhythm, in a flow, kind of just you gotta space the floor,» Tatum said when asked about his performance. «We always talk about respecting other people's space. If that calls for being in the corner or passing them the ball, that's what we're trying to do on that possession. You gotta honor that.»

The Celtics stayed in the game thanks to a sensational performance from Jaylen Brown, who had 41 points, 14 rebounds, four assists and two steals in 41 minutes. But they repeatedly cost themselves