Jayson Tatum and Boston defeat Atlanta to end road trip

Tatum played with an ease and joy not seen in North Carolina, hitting six 3-pointers in a sparkling first half and the Celtics cruised to a 123-93 victory over the overwhelmed Hawks at State Farm Arena.

Tatum shot 4 for 18 from the 3-point line in the two games against the Hornets. He was 6 of 14 against Atlanta, making threes on offense and more closely resembled Tatum, who scored eight goals in the season opener against the Knicks.

With Jaylen Brown missing a second straight game with a hip flexor injury, the Celtics used the balance to beat the undermanned Hawks, who were missing two starters, then got just 2 points from All-Star Trae Young, who finished 10th in The NBA went into the game scoring 27 points per game.

Tatum’s headband colleague White helped with 21 points, while Payton Pritchard continued his outstanding play off the bench with 18 points in more than 25 minutes. The Celtics led by as many as 37 points and were never in danger after ending the first half on a 34-9 run.

It was a weekend of drama for Tatum, who was blatantly fouled twice in six seconds in Friday’s win over Charlotte, including being run over by Williams on a controversial play that angered several of Tatum’s teammates.

After an off Sunday in Atlanta, Tatum recharged and looked like his All-Star self with a dominant first half. The NBA-best Celtics lost back-to-back games here in March, and Tatum remembered those stunning defeats.

“After understanding what happened the last time we came here, we lost two games in a row,” he said. “We had it in our heads that we wanted to come out, play a lot better and get a win. I’m trying to find ways to be effective, to be the ball handler, to be the pick-and-roll, even if I don’t get credit for it, which leads to confusion (on defense). We get great shots out of it. I’m trying to find a way to get simple games since I realize they won’t let me play the whole game in one way. That’s the fun of figuring it out.”

Tatum scored 14 points in the opening period, including the final eight, as the Celtics led 35-30. After Jalen Johnson gave the Hawks a 44-41 lead with a 3-pointer at 8:39, the Celtics basically took all the excitement out of the game, going on separate 11-0 runs and scoring 34 points in the finale scored more than eight minutes of the second period.

Tatum added two 3-pointers along with a conventional and-1 and a technical free throw to give Boston a 75-53 lead. White ended the barrage with two three-pointers in the final 39 seconds of the half.

Tatum was in better spirits than he was on Saturday when he reluctantly spoke to the media following the Williams controversy. When asked if the headband looks good on him, he replied: “Does it look good? I mean, I’ll always be handsome. I used to wear a headband a lot, but that’s between me and D-White. We have an agreement between the two of us.

“I called today so I’m waiting for him to tell me we have to wear a headband next time.”

With Brown out, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla opted for a double-big lineup, giving Neemias Queta his first NBA start in 55 career games. He finished the game with 10 points and 7 rebounds in 23 minutes and tied for a team-best plus-31.

After starting this road trip with an overtime loss to Indiana, the Celtics won the last three games by a combined 55 points and outscored their opponents. Young appeared frustrated most of the night, missing nine of his 10 shots before being eliminated in the third quarter.

“He’s a great player, but I thought we played good team defense,” Mazzulla said. “I thought we established our defense on this trip and I think it takes all five guys to protect him. I think everyone did a great job of defending without fouls, keeping him out of transition and just protecting him as a whole team.”

The Celtics also chased Atlanta from the 3-point line, holding the Hawks to 6 of 31 shooting, and it was the first time since Nov. 15, 2023 that Young was held without a 3-pointer.

Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @GwashburnGlobe.