Former NBA Superstar Gets Brutally Honest on Jayson Tatum Pressure With Boston Celtics
For all of what he has done for the Boston Celtics, Jayson Tatum has received his fair share of criticisms over the years. The latest one, though, comes from former NBA star DeMarcus Cousins and how the lack of pressure has made people bored of the forward’s success.
While most of the attention was focused on Los Angeles Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball back in 2017, the real young star that had a brighter future was Tatum. Back then, the 6’8″ forward out of Duke averaged 13.9 points on 47 percent shooting from the field, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.6 assists.
Now in his seventh year in the league, Tatum has evolved into an effective two-way star that can impact the game on both ends of the court. Over the course of 74 games during the regular season this year, the Celtics All-Star notched 26.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per contest.
Tatum’s dominance was in full display during the Celtics’ second round series against Donovan Mitchell’s Cleveland Cavaliers. In those five games, he tallied 26.8 points, 10.4 rebounds, 6.2 assists, and 1.6 steals. And even though he didn’t shoot the ball well from beyond the arc, averaging a double-double was definitely one of the factors that led to Boston’s victory over the Cavs.
Former NBA Star DeMarcus Cousins Gets Real On Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics
While Tatum has been consistent all year long, other personalities have given a different take on how he has been performing. Among those who gave their take on the Celtics star is former NBA star DeMarcus Cousins in a video shared by ClutchPoints on X.
“I don’t think he’s under any pressure… it’s more so the circumstances of the early start to his career. He came in as a young guy & he saw success early. I feel like people have kinda gotten bored with his success.”
DeMarcus Cousins on Jayson Tatum.pic.twitter.com/yt060F3OW4
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) May 22, 2024
As it stands, Boston’s playoff path has been relatively easy so far. They first faced a Miami Heat Team without Jimmy Butler in the first round and eliminated a Cavaliers lineup that was riddled with injuries. Now, they are matched up against an inexperienced Indiana Pacers squad and even got the first win of the series against them.
Jayson Tatum and the Celtics still have to eliminate the Pacers and defeat either the Dallas Mavericks or Minnesota in the NBA Finals to win the big one. Only then will Cousins’ claim about the Boston star be refuted.
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