The crew on ESPN’s NBA Countdown had a lively debate on Boston Celtics star forward Jayson Tatum. The Celtics will cap off this two-game road trip as they head into Madison Square Garden to face off against the New York Knicks. However, before the game, the hosts indulged in a spirited debate about Tatum’s chances of winning MVP, his mindset going into the playoffs, and his comments from two years ago amid the 2022 NBA Finals.
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Rarely does the day come when veteran NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith gives a player his flowers. But this time, the 56-year-old NBA expert was all praises about Jayson Tatum and his confidence going forward.
Recently, the five-time All-Star touched upon his interview with Malika Andrews back during the 2022 NBA Finals. Having claimed to be the best player every time he stepped on the floor, Tatum and the Celtics could not come through as a 2-1 lead ended in a 4-2 loss to the Warriors.
While discussing Tatum’s resume as a contender in the MVP race, Stephen A. Smith decided to highlight the Duke product’s comments during that very same interview.
“I’m happy he said what he said because a couple of years ago in the Finals, he wasn’t the first, he wasn’t the best player on the team, he wasn’t the second best player on the court. Jaylen Brown was better than him, just like Stephen Curry was better than him.”
“Jayson Tatum knows that. And the person that sat down with you for that great interview that you did. That man was looking you in your face and he was saying subliminally, ‘Yo, I know I didn’t do what I was supposed to do two years ago. I’m coming to do it this time. That’s why you gotta love what he said.”
Stephen A. Smith highlighted how Jayson Tatum took accountability for his poor performance in the 2022 NBA Finals instead of running away from the blame. Moreover, Smith was beyond impressed with Tatum’s confidence coming into this year as the Celtics stand at the top of the Eastern Conference. That said, whether or not Tatum can really go all the way this time remains to be seen. After all, the regular season and the postseason are two completely different phases of the NBA.
As for Malika Andrews, the woman who took that iconic interview with the Boston Celtics star, could not agree more with Smith as she sat right next to him, nodding her head.
Can Jayson Tatum lead the Celtics back to its glory days?
The Boston Celtics have a 45-12 record with the win over the New York Knicks tonight. The team has been clicking on all cylinders and Jayson Tatum has done a great job at leading his team in point production, rebounds, and steals.
JT has been averaging 26.9 PPG, 8.5 RPG, and 4.8 APG so far this season. Though his numbers may not be out of this world, Tatum did make a case for himself being in this year’s MVP honors conversation.
“I don’t have the points per game that the other three or four guys will, but I think the voters are smart enough to understand the dynamic of our team. Essentially having to do less scoring maybe on certain nights but still impact the game in a lot of ways to kind of ensure that we win every single night.”
Tatum and the Celtics made the NBA Finals two years ago and were one step away from making back-to-back appearances. It will be interesting to see how Jayson Tatum and the Celtics perform in the coming playoffs. Hopefully, the 25-year-old can finally back up his claims this coming postseason.
