On media day, Jayson Tatum was asked if the Celtics are now “his team”, as many (including myself) have suggested this offseason, and he expertly dodged the question.
“It’s not a simple thing. Is this my team?… I understand the roles that we all play on this team…”
“We all bring something different on a daily basis to make the group better, add towards winning, make this place, this organization better. So it's not just saying it's my team…I got 14 other teammates that I'm going to lean on, and we all need each other to do better every single day.”
That’s a very politically correct answer from someone with excellent media savviness who seldom says the wrong thing. There’s no reason for JT to come out and create any kind of controversy, risk ruffling any feathers, or give out a quote that’s going to lead the sports talk show cycle.
Tatum's modesty doesn't change the Celtics' reality
But regardless of what he says, the Celtics are absolutely his team. Every move that Brad Stevens and the front office have made over the past couple of years has been to complement JT and put him in position to lead this team to glory.
They traded away the team’s only other All-Star, Jaylen Brown, and brought in a veteran in Paul George, who has already insisted that Tatum is the superstar and that he’s in Boston to help him out. They got centers to screen and rebound for Tatum. They’ve got menaces on the wing to defend and do the dirty work around Tatum. They have guys who can spot up and open up space as catch-and-shoot threats for Tatum.
Turning into Tatum's team is good for the Celtics
It’s all about Tatum. And that’s a good thing. In fact, as much as Celtics fans love Jaylen, this is probably long overdue. JT has been a top-tier superstar for a long time, but he has never had this kind of runway to be the leader, the alpha, the top dog, and the face of the franchise. He has earned it, and he may not want it (maybe he does- who knows?), but he deserves it.
And it’s best for the team. When you have a generational talent like Tatum, it would be crazy not to build around him and create the best roster to support his skills. It has taken ten years, and it’s not like they’ve wasted that time, as they’ve won a title and come close on several other occasions, but now we’re finally here, and it’s glorious.
He’s not lying when he talks about the different roles and how he is going to lean on his teammates, but you know what? That’s the kind of thing a leader says. For better or worse, the Boston Celtics are now Jayson Tatum’s team in every possible way, and I, for one, think that’s great news for the team’s chances going forward.
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