Tatum Drops 40, Hits the Overtime Buzzer-Beater, and the Celtics Survive the Winless Nets 125-124

Let me start with the ending, because everybody will. With 2.3 seconds left in overtime and Boston down one, Derrick White inbounded to Jayson Tatum, who pulled up from around the free-throw line and buried a 17-footer at the buzzer. Celtics 125, Nets 124, Tuesday night at TD Garden, according to the Associated Press recap on NBA.com. It was Boston's third straight win.

Tatum finished with 40 points on 10-of-20 shooting, plus eight assists and five rebounds, per NBC Sports Boston. Here's the stat I can't get past: 18-for-22 from the line, a career high in free-throw attempts. He didn't need the three ball. He lived in the paint and at the stripe, which is exactly what you want from your best player on a night the team can't shoot.

And the team couldn't shoot. Boston went 2-for-16 from three in the first half, per the AP, and 11-for-41 for the game, 27 percent, per NBC Sports Boston. Somehow it trailed only 61-56 at the half. Neither team led by more than eight all night. Paul George added 20 points, seven rebounds and seven assists; White had 16 and six assists; Jordan Walsh gave Boston 15 off three threes.

The end of regulation is where it got weird. With 33.7 seconds left, White slipped behind the defense, Tatum found him for a dunk and White hit the and-one for a 114-111 lead, the AP reported. Then Mitchell Robinson went to the line with three seconds left and missed both. The AP noted Robinson is a career 50.7 percent free-throw shooter and was 1-for-4 on the night. NBC Sports Boston also flagged a poorly timed foul by Neemias Queta that set up Brooklyn. Nets rookie Mikel Brown Jr., the sixth pick in the draft out of Louisville, hit a tying three with 0.2 seconds left. Overtime.

In OT the officials gave White a foul that would have put him on the line to tie or win. Brooklyn challenged, and the call was overturned, NBC Sports Boston reported. Then Brown missed a layup with 2.3 seconds left, which set up Tatum. So, to be clear: the Celtics won a game against a team that is now 0-4 because a rookie missed a layup. My take? A win is a win in October, but you don't want to make a habit of this.

Credit Brooklyn. Michael Porter Jr. had 27 points and 12 rebounds, Julius Randle scored 24, and Brown had 17, per the AP. The Nets went up 109-104 on a Randle basket with 2:57 left before Boston rallied. Attendance was 19,156.

The best quote of the night came from George, who is 36 and has missed big chunks of recent seasons. "I feel great," he told reporters, per NBC Sports Boston. "Knock on wood, those days are behind me... But the main goal is to get to the end of the year and be healthy at the end of the year."

Boston is 3-1 and hasn't lost since blowing a 22-point lead in the opener at Detroit, the AP noted. Next up: the Bulls at TD Garden on Friday in the NBA Cup group stage. Dez's take: Tatum can carry a bad shooting night, but the free throws at the end of regulation are a real problem. Robinson is 2-for-8 from the line this season, per the AP. Teams will foul him on purpose. Mazzulla has to decide who is on the floor in the last minute.