Ex-Celtics Marquis Daniels Gets Honest About Jayson Tatum

Getty Marquis Daniels

Jayson Tatum has definitely left an impression on former Boston Celtics wing Marquis Daniels. The former Celtic, who played for the team from 2009 to 2012, singled out Tatum’s leadership as a strength, despite coming off as a quiet person.

“A guy like JT, you know he’s a quiet guy. He would rather lead by example. Go out there and play hard, show his work. But, when he does speak, people will listen. Because he doesn’t say much, so it’s like, ‘OK, he’s saying something, so it must be important…I think JT’s gonna be really, really good in this league for a long time,” Daniels said on the October 12 episode of “Green With Envy.”

Even if Tatum hasn’t gotten the Celtics over the hump, he still has accomplished a lot in the six years he’s played for the Celtics. They’ve made four Eastern Conference Finals appearances and made their first NBA Finals berth since 2010. Coincidentally, Daniels was on that team.

In his time with the Celtics, Daniels got to play with the likes of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Rajon Rondo, so he knows up close what leaders do. During his time with the Dallas Mavericks, he helped them reach their first NBA Finals as a franchise in 2006, so he clearly learned from the leadership of Dirk Nowitzki.

Kristaps Porzingis Says Playing With Jayson Tatum Is Easy

After Kristaps Porzingis made his preseason debut for the Celtics, he singled out his two-man game with Tatum while calling playing with him easy.

“It’s super easy, honestly,” Porzingis said on October 9, per CLNS Media Boston’s Sports Network’s YouTube Channel. “Those guys are so talented. Jayson draws so much attention that it opens things up for me, and that’s a perfect scenario for me. So I’m looking forward to more of those two-man, three-man-actions where it’s really hard to guard because we don’t even know what we’re gonna do. We’re freestyling it and playing off of each other. So it has to be pretty impossible for the other team to understand what’s gonna happen.”

Because he is seen as one of the league’s better players, Tatum draws much attention by himself. Because Porzingis is a seven-foot-three floor-spacer, they will make life easier for one another when they take the floor.

Utah Jazz Tried to Acquire Jrue Holiday: Report

The Celtics weren’t alone in the Jrue Holiday sweepstakes, as The Salt Lake Tribune’s Andy Larsen reported that the Utah Jazz, who has former Celtics exec Danny Ainge working for them in the front office, tried to acquire Holiday.

“According to multiple reports, the Jazz were extremely involved in the Holiday trade negotiations, at least considering an offer that was at least competitive with Boston’s winning offer that included two first-round picks, Malcolm Brogdon, and Robert Williams. I’ve been told that the Jazz’s potential offer also involved two first-round picks — which is a sizable trade offer for a 33-year-old point guard that probably doesn’t tip the scales for the Jazz to become championship competitive,” Larsen reported in an October 10 story.

ESPN’s Bobby Marks explained on ESPN 700 why the Jazz didn’t pull the trigger.

“I think if Utah had a strong comfort level that Jrue Holiday was going to… commit long term, then yes, I think Utah would have went in as far as multiple draft picks,” Marks said, as transcribed by Larsen.

This could also be a strong sign that Holiday will stick around with the Celtics since the Jazz didn’t want to take the risk that the Celtics did.