Getty Jayson Tatum defending Kevin Durant
Jayson Tatum is one of the best players in the NBA and is often credited as such by both the media and other players. Kevin Durant is no exception, as he showered the Boston Celtics‘ star with praise and predicted Tatum will “control the league for the next 10-12 years”.
Speaking to Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic after the Sun’s practice on March 13, Durant said “I’ve been in this league a long time now and I know when it’s a passing of the guard. I know when the young dudes are going to come in and do the same thing the older guys are doing. He’s [Tatum] one of those guys that’s likely going to control the league for the next 10, 12 years and be a staple in our game and the history of our game.”
The Celtics defeated the Phoenix Suns 117-107 on March 9, where Tatum had 29 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists.
Durant also spoke on Tatum’s case for MVP, saying “His consistency all year. Putting up a high number of points. Stats matter when it comes to MVP. His team is winning games, most importantly, by a landslide. The record factors into it. He’s had MVP-caliber seasons the last few years, too. So, it’s just a matter of your narrative at this point.”
Jayson Tatum By the Numbers
Tatum was selected to his fifth All-Star game this season and is putting up fantastic numbers once again. The All-NBA forward is averaging 27 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 4.9 assists, and has led the Celtics to the best record in the league so far.
His career high in assist numbers is a testament to the unselfish, team-first mentality that Tatum and his teammates have been preaching all year.
In a 115-109 loss to the Denver Nuggets on March 7, Tatum finished the game with 15 points and a team-high 8 assists. Following the game, Tatum spoke to the media about his play, saying “It’s not upon me to hijack the game and make it about me and it’s a national TV game. Other guys had it going. So if I have to be in the corner, if I have to be a facilitator at times, so be it.”
“It’s not upon me to hijack the game and make it about me and it’s a national TV game. Other guys had it going. So if I have to be in the corner, if I have to be a facilitator at times, so be it.”
— Jayson Tatum
Another area of growth has been Tatum’s play in the post. He is currently averaging 2.5 post-ups per game, the highest of his career. On those plays, he is averaging 1.14 points per possession, the third most efficient in the league among players with at least 2.5 post-ups per game.
With Tatum consistently playing the four this season, it seems an emphasis has been put on him getting into the paint and posting up more. It was also reported that Tatum had added around 12 pounds of muscle, which appears to be paying dividends in this aspect of his game.
Suns Rematch
The Celtics and Suns will battle each other once again on March 14. The Celtics, who are 51-14, are comfortably in first in the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, the 38-27 Suns sit in seventh place in a crowded Western Conference, just a half of a game above the Dallas Mavericks.
Speaking about the matchup, Devin Booker said “They’re a complete team. They’ve been really good in the past, too, but they play together well. They switch a lot of actions and they have the versatility of guys guarding one through five. That helps out a lot. It’ll be a good test for us. I’m looking forward to it.”