Jayson Tatum gives comically honest analysis of his own game from win over Pacers

BOSTON -- The Celtics beat the Pacers on Thursday night. It required overtime, but they won the game.

In that win, Jayson Tatum -- fresh off winning his All-Star Game MVP -- put together a stat line fitting of a star: 31 points, 12 rebounds seven assists, plus a couple of steals and a block.

Despite the numbers, it wasn't a great game for Tatum. He shot 9-for-25 from the field and 3-for-12 from 3, and he was a team-worst minus-8 while on the floor.

That's not some criticism from an outsider though. Even Tatum himself admitted that he wasn't at the top of his game, and he offered up a comically blunt assessment of his own play.

"It was either I left all my shooting in Utah, or I'm still drunk from vacation," Tatum said. "That's how I played tonight. A good stat line, but really not a really good game."

A reporter asked Tatum to clarify what he had been drinking during the All-Star break.

"Yeah ... I drunk some Gatorade," Tatum said.

Tatum did note that everybody in the league is "in the same boat" when it comes to revving everything back up after the break, and that the first game back can be a struggle. But he also criticized himself for chucking up an airball in overtime. Tatum ended up scoring on a putback off Marcus Smart's miss, but he didn't mince words when describing what took place.

"I shot a [B.S.]-ass shot, Smart got the rebound and, you know, it was late clock so I knew he had to throw it up there," Tatum said. "You're always taught [since you're] a kid that last-second shots, attack the glass, you never know what could happen. So just tried to go make a play."

A lot can be said about Tatum's overall performance on Thursday. But nobody can question his honesty.