“Jayson Tatum not playing like a superstar doesn’t remove his superstar status”: Chris Broussard brings up Larry Bird, Tim Duncan, and Dwyane Wade, making a perfect case for Celtics star

Akash Murty | 14/06/2022
“Jayson Tatum not playing like a superstar doesn't remove his superstar status”: Chris Broussard brings up Larry Bird, Tim Duncan, and Dwyane Wade, making a perfect case for Celtics star

Even if Jayson Tatum and his Celtics lose the Finals without him performing well in the remaining games, he would still be a league superstar.

Jayson Tatum is a proven playoff star. In the 2018 Playoffs, at 20-years of age, he averaged more than 18 points in the 19 games the Celtics played in his first year in the league. That average was higher than his regular-season that and the following year.

Although his performance comparatively dipped a bit in next year’s postseason, he had 25.7-10-5 and 30.6-5.8-4.6 in the 2020 and 2021 playoffs. C’s never reached the Finals in any of those four years.

But leading a young team to 2/4 postseasons within the first four years of making it to the league? Several superstars couldn’t do it that early, and mind you that Tatum has played just one year of college basketball.

There is no doubt that the 3x All-Star is already a superstar in the league, but Fox Sports 1 is giving it a rethinking because of his recent form in the NBA Finals. Really?

Also read: “LeBron James bailed on his hometown twice, also on Pat Riley and Dwyane Wade”: Colin Cowherd is convinced that the 4x MVP will ditch the Lakers as well

 

Jayson Tatum is no different than Larry Bird, Tim Duncan, or Dwyane Wade, who all needed a veteran star to lead them to a championship.

Underperforming at THE grandest stage cannot affect the superstar status in any sport. Aron Rodgers has won it all just once in his 17-year NFL career, and the only time he made it to the Super Bowl. Do we debate his stardom? Of course not.

There shouldn’t be any debates on Tatum as well, but FS1 thought it’d be a good idea to do a segment “Is Tatum’s superstar status in jeopardy after his Game 4 performance?”. But thanks to Nick Wright, Chris Broussard and Kevin Wilds, none of them were too wild. They went against the topic.

Broussard had the best explanation in making a case for the 24-year-old forward who is shooting miserably at 28% inside the arc while the rest of the aspects of his game are still at a superstar level. Apart from his Magic Johnson mention, the veteran analyst was on point.

Also read: “Kobe Bryant would tell you the difference between 06 and 09, was Pau Gasol!”: Kevin Durant takes aim at the Lakers legend’s legacy during his prime 

The Duke alumn has had some challenging games in every series this postseason, but the man came back stronger the very next match each time. Let’s see what a series of struggling games brings out of him in the next three possible games.

Post Edited By: Akash Murty
boston celtics Dwyane Wade Jayson Tatum Larry Bird Tim Duncan

About the author

Akash Murty

An Electrical and Electronics Engineer by degree, Akash Murty is an NBA Editor at The SportsRush. Previously a Software Engineer, Murty couldn’t keep himself away from sports, and his knack for writing and putting his opinion forward brought him to the TSR. A big Soccer enthusiast, his interest in basketball developed late, as he got access to a hoop for the first time at 17. Following this, he started watching basketball at the 2012 Olympics, which transitioned to NBA, and he became a fan of the game as he watched LeBron James dominate the league. Him being an avid learner of the game and ritually following the league for around a decade, he now writes articles ranging from throwbacks, and live game reports, to gossip. LA Lakers are his favourite basketball team, while Chelsea has his heart in football. He also likes travelling, reading fiction, and sometimes cooking.

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