The battle of the two top NBA teams in the East graced our screens on Friday night. The first-place Cleveland Cavaliers traveled to Boston to battle the second-place Celtics — and Jayson Tatum was taking no prisoners.
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The six-time All-Star dropped 30 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists in just the first half alone, giving his team a comfortable 76-64 lead at the break. He shot 11-for-17 from the field and was 4-of-8 from the three-point line. His first-half performance even got him to trend on social media.
In fact, Tatum’s excellent play caught the eye of NBA legend Kevin Garnett, who immediately commended the 26-year-old Celtic on Instagram.
“Mannnnnnnnn… the boy JT ain’t playing no games tonight,” stated KG. “STATEMENT GAME.”
KG commends Tatum’s first half against the Cavs pic.twitter.com/VzlftWcAcs
— tragicpatek (@tragicpatek) March 1, 2025
The incredible performance could not have come at a better time. Tatum has been heavily criticized for not being able to carry the torch as a potential “face of the league,” especially after being outplayed by teammate Jaylen Brown in their 2024 Championship run.
Tatum finished the Cavs game with 46 points, but his team unfortunately lost the contest 116-123. Regardless, this game should certainly silence some of his haters.
Garnett has always been a strong supporter of Tatum
Tonight wouldn’t be the first time that Garnett has publicly supported Tatum. A week ago, KG spoke on his KG Certified podcast about how much Tatum has improved his game over the years. That said, the Hall of Famer did mention that the league hasn’t seen the best of Tatum’s skills just yet.
“I think Tatum’s going to get even better,” KG predicted. “As he gets older, he’s going to get smarter, his IQ is going to grow. He’s going to get better at playmaking. I see his handles has gotten a lot tighter. I see the growth. I see the growth in his game. I see the growth in his confidence. I don’t think that we’re seeing the best of him yet.”
Garnett also threw some praise to Jaylen Brown, calling the Brown and Tatum combo the head of the Celtic Buzzsaw that has dominated the East for years. With the postseason right around the corner, we may be seeing another Finals run from Boston.
