Tatum Won Player of the Week the Same Day the Streak Died in Houston, 109-93. Then He Talked About Durant and the Achilles

Monday in Houston was a weird little split-screen for the Celtics. In the morning, Jayson Tatum was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the 14th time in his career. At night, the five-game winning streak he carried ended, 109-93, against Kevin Durant and the Rockets at Toyota Center, The Boston Globe reported.

Tatum earned the weekly award by leading Boston to a 4-0 week averaging 30.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 7 assists, per the Globe. That stretch included a career-high 22 free-throw attempts in Tuesday's win over Brooklyn, plus the buzzer-beater that beat the Nets.

<h3>Durant, and why it matters to Tatum</h3>

The Durant matchup meant more to Tatum than a box score. Durant, 38, came back from the torn Achilles he suffered in the 2019 NBA Finals, sat out 2019-20, and then played 75, 62 and 78 games the past three seasons, the Globe noted. Tatum, who is back from the same injury, talked about him before the game.

'KD, obviously, one of the 5, 10, 15 best players of all time,' Tatum said, per the Globe. 'Somebody that had the same exact injury and for me, was kind of like the standard of hope in a sense of for him to have that injury and then come back the way he has.'

'It was always in the back of my mind that he was the one that changed the narrative [for Achilles injuries],' he added. 'Indirectly, it was very helpful for myself going through the rehab process.'

That's not a throwaway quote. That's a guy telling you what got him through a year of rehab.

<h3>The Orlando win that started the week's end</h3>

Sunday in Orlando, Boston won 108-97 for streak game No. 5, Heavy reported, though not without the usual drama: a 15-point lead with seven minutes left in the third got coughed up before the Celtics closed it out. Tatum took a shot to the head and bled, then said afterward he got a cut but didn't need stitches, per the Globe's Gary Washburn as quoted by Heavy.

He went 17 times to the line in that one. Tatum is leading the NBA with 10.2 free-throw attempts a game, Heavy reported, well above his previous career high of 8.4 in 2022-23.

Joe Mazzulla's praise after Orlando was about defense, not scoring. 'He had a pick-and-roll defense in front of Orlando's bench that he executed our defensive system to the T,' Mazzulla said. 'And to me, that's more important than anything else because it sets the tone, and when he's willing to do it, it makes it a standard.'

<h3>Monday's lineup puzzle</h3>

With Paul George, 36, resting on the second night of the back-to-back, Mazzulla kept tinkering, the Globe reported. Neemias Queta got his second straight start, Baylor Scheierman replaced George, and Hugo González, also on his second straight start, drew the Durant assignment. Rough job for anybody.

Mitchell Robinson came off the bench and lasted four minutes in the first quarter before heading to the locker room with a sprained left thumb. He came back to the bench midway through the second and finished with 4 points and a minus-16, per the Globe. 'I don't even know, to be honest,' Robinson said of his struggles. 'But I gotta figure it out soon though.'

Rookie Chris Cenac Jr., 19, played the final 2 1/2 minutes and hit his only shot. 'I trust him, I don't know how it's going to go but I trust him,' Mazzulla said.

Old friend Marcus Smart had his best game against Boston in three tries: 2 for 10 from the floor, 2 for 8 from three, 8 points, four rebounds and four assists in about 20 minutes. In his previous two games against the Celtics, he was 1 for 18, the Globe noted.

<h3>Dez's take</h3>

Losing the second night of a back-to-back in Houston with your No. 2 scorer resting isn't a crisis. Watching the guy who changed the narrative on Achilles injuries hand you a loss, while your guy who just came back from one wins Player of the Week? That's the kind of night that tells you this season is about Tatum's legs and George's knee, in that order. Keep both healthy and the five-game streaks will keep coming.

Next up: Milwaukee at TD Garden later this week, per the schedule listed by Sports Illustrated. Two days off to figure out that thumb.