Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics rebounded against the New York Knicks on Saturday. After the Celtics blew back-to-back 20-point leads during the first two games of the Eastern Conference semifinals, they defeated the Knicks, 115-93, as Tatum put up 22 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists.

When the Celtics lost the first two games of the series, Tatum, as the star of the team, bore a good amount of the blame for his team's losses. Tatum and the Celtics shot poorly during those games, particularly in Game 2, when he shot 26.3% from the field and missed what could have been a game-winning basket.

Though Tatum was coming off two games that weren't his best, that didn't stop him from coming into Game 3 with positive energy. After the Game 3 win over the Knicks, Tatum spoke candidly on his mindset, and handling the criticism he does receive when he's not at his best.

“You just understand what comes with being that guy," Tatum said. "I live a great life, I ain’t going to lie. I make a lot of money, I take care of my family, I’ve been able to experience a lot of things, but you also have to accept what comes with that, right? I get a lot of praise. I get a lot of credit. I get a lot of accolades. But I’m not perfect, and there’s times where I’ve needed to play better. I’ve needed to do more. And that comes with being that guy.

Tatum continued: “So, just understanding that, and people just don’t criticize me. There’s a lot of people that came before me that they criticized, and there’s going to be people that come after me that they criticize. For me, it’s just a sense of joy that I play with. Coming into a game with an angry face and mad at the world, that’s not who I am. It’s not when I play my best. So I always say you’ve got to be the same person if things are going great and when things aren’t going great. You can’t switch up. That’s the character of a good man.”

It's paid off for Tatum so far. He is a reigning NBA champion, one of the best players in the league, and a leader for a Celtics team that is consistently one of the NBA's best.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jayson Tatum Gets Candid on Handling Criticism After Celtics' Rebound vs. Knicks.

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