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Tim Bontemps
NEW YORK — Celtics star Jayson Tatum was carried off the court while putting no weight on his right leg late in the fourth quarter of Boston’s 121-113 loss to the New York Knicks in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Monday night.
The Celtics had just turned the ball over and as Tatum lunged forward toward the loose ball, his leg gave out and he went down. He buried his face in a towel in obvious pain while grabbing at his leg above the ankle after the non-contact injury.
Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla didn’t know the extent of the injury and said the All-Star forward would undergo an MRI exam Tuesday.
“Obviously you’re always concerned about someone’s health. So it’s twofold,” Mazzulla said. “We’re concerned about his health, where he’s at, and we’re concerned about what we have to do better for Game 5 when we get back to Boston.”
Tatum had been playing a sensational game, scoring 42 points — his high in these playoffs — on 16-for-28 shooting before the injury, which occurred with 2:58 to go in the fourth quarter.
He buried his face in his hands as he was pushed down a tunnel in a wheelchair after leaving the floor.
Earlier this postseason, Tatum sat out Game 2 of the Celtics’ first-round series against the Orlando Magic, the first missed playoff game of his career, with a bone bruise in his right wrist. He has since been playing with a protective black wrap around the wrist.
An eight-year veteran, Tatum, 27, won his first NBA title last year when he led the Celtics to their 18th championship.
Boston, which had led New York by over 20 points in Games 1 and 2, led by 14 points Monday night before the Knicks came back in the second half to move to within one win of advancing to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in 25 years.
The series resumes Wednesday night in Boston.
Information from The Associated Press was included in this report.
