Is Jayson Tatum Upset About His Treatment?
Despite going 49-33, last years Boston Celtics team can be considered the most disappointing in a while. There was plenty of drama surrounding the locker room, making team chemistry a question mark all year. Despite all that – and the losses of Al Horford, Kyrie Irving, and more-, the Celtics had a great 2019-2020 season.
The C’s were able to finish the year with a record of 48-24, good for third place in the Eastern Conference. At the same time, Boston became the first team in 36 years to have three players average over 20 points per game (Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Kemba Walker).
What I like about Jaylen is he only deals in the facts pic.twitter.com/c2dsfLZ2Qz
— Čöłęÿ Mīçk (@ColeyMick) August 16, 2020
Having three stars like Brown, Walker and Tatum is definitely a luxury. Not many teams can say they have three scorers that can take over a game at any moment.
And, like I said, all three of these players are stars. But apparently Jayson Tatum doesn’t feel like one, according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic.
Jayson Tatum is tired of not getting star treatment from officials and has been complaining about it on the bench and in the makeshift locker room, per @joevardon pic.twitter.com/E3molCc84L
— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) August 17, 2020
Who knows if this is actually true, but if this is the case the Celtics should be a little worried about their postseason chances.
Why you ask? Well, if the C’s key offensive piece is more focused on the calls he isn’t getting rather than the actual game, that is a recipe for disaster.
I can understand the frustration of a star player who isn’t getting the same calls as say Dame Lillard, Kawhi Leonard, etcetera. But in the same breath, Tatum’s focus should be on getting to the NBA Finals. Not whether or not he gets four or six extra free throws a game.
In the end those extra free throws would help, but the arm waving and whining at the referee does not. That’s especially true if the opponent grabs the rebound and scoots down the court in three steps * cough cough Giannis Antetokounmpo*.
I’m not saying that this will be the demise of this C’s team, but to win a championship everyones goals have to be aligned. And if the cog that helps the offense move doesn’t have the same goals as everyone else, Boston could say adios to the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy for the time being.
Besides, Tatum is a 22-year-old who hasn’t won anything other than the NBA Skills Challenge. If he wants to start getting the calls he believes he deserves, he should shut up, put his head down and get to work like his teammates Brown and Walker.
Hopefully for C’s fans, that work will start tonight as the Celtics get ready to take on the Ben Simmons-less Philadelphia 76ers in the first round of the NBA playoffs. Game one tips off at 6:30 pm / ET after the conclusion of the Toronto Raptors, Brooklyn Nets game one matchup.
– Jarrod Ribaudo (@Jribs53)