![]() ![]() His bitterness about Boston’s treatment of him is probably justified, something he expressed in two recent profiles by The Ringer and The New York Times. From a refusal to unconditionally condemn antisemitism from former teammate Kyrie Irving to being placed in every trade rumor imaginable in the past five years, from Anthony Davis to Kevin Durant. It is worth wondering whether outside distractions-his fault or otherwise-have contributed to his second-fiddle status. Yet a suspiciously large number of Celtics games end with the feeling that Jaylen may actually be better. Go to Charlestown and ask 100 people who the best player on the Celtics is, and almost all of them will say Tatum. That question is right where Jaylen exists. Jaylen fits the Thor persona perfectly: amazing hair that changes a lot, god-like physical strength, and the tendency to make everyone question if he is actually more powerful than Tatum. The C’s will almost certainly need him to do so again someday soon.īoston Celtics Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports Boston Celtics forward Jaylen“JB” Brown, #7 Despite some lackluster performances, the moment required him to ascend. That game alone gives me hope that his ceiling is that of an all-time great. There were moments in that game where our entire offense consisted of Tatum breaking down his defender and hitting contested shots from all three levels. Game 6 of last year’s second round was Tatum’s magnum opus, delivering a 46-point nuke with the season on the line and in hostile territory. However, in true Captain America fashion, Tatum has also proven he can walk into Milwaukee and wield Mjölnir against Giannis Antetokounmpo, the closest thing the NBA has had to Thanos. I don’t actually wear glasses, but that’s beside the point. Tatum has proven that he can duel with the best players in the league and win but has the annoying habit of disappearing in critical moments, such as in do-or-die Game 6 of last year’s NBA Finals, in which he put up a mere 13 points, or in Game 5 of the recent Hawks series, where he was so deferential to his supporting cast that you could have told me he was Grant Williams if I didn’t have my glasses. Like the once-scrawny Steve Rodgers, he was not anyone’s first pick in 2017, but has since become by far the best player from that draft. Tatum on the other hand has become a perennial All-NBA superstar who is the single most important piece to any potential title run. That pick became Markelle Fultz, who’s midway through a 24-year-old career revival on the Orlando Magic. Tatum’s path to the Celtics ironically involved trading the #1 pick to the 76ers, who the Cs will face on Monday to kick off their second round series. *Spoilers ahead for every Marvel movie I have seenīoston Celtics Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports Boston Celtics forward Jayson “JT” Tatum, #0 If you survived that, congratulations! And if you still find yourself confused about who is even on the Celtics these days, may I welcome you to the first annual way-too-complicated Boston Celtics 2023 Playoff Roster Rundown, explained-in order to maximize Gen-Z engagement-through Marvel superheroes. To answer all of those in one run-on sentence so confusing it might need to be excavated by archeologists in 30 years he’s gone and we’re happy about it he was great but ran out of knees we traded him for Kyrie somehow we did, but he came back and now he’s the man we still love them, but they just aren’t our best options no. “Do we still have Avery Bradley? I have his jersey” “Why are Grant and Pritchard sitting on the bench clapping?” “Didn’t we lose Al Horford to the 76ers? How is he back?” “Where did Isaiah Thomas end up? He was so good!” ![]() Nevertheless, roster turnover can prove daunting for the casual Boston Celtics fan, who might ask some very valid questions of the current roster: So I guess it’s not really like inflation. ![]() It’s a bit like inflation, except without all the political flame-throwing and emotionally potent oversimplifications. Even a dynasty like the Golden State Warriors must transplant new blood to continue competing year after year. As far as I can tell, no team in NBA history has ever kept the same exact 13-15 man roster across two seasons due to the draft, free agency, trades, and salary cap rules. ![]()
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