Jayson Tatum is being raked over the coals on social media and drawing criticism in recent days due to a perceived lack of durability. This narrative is extremely dumb and nowhere close to accurate, but the most frustrating part is that this is all stemming from a recent appearance by the Boston Globe’s Gary Washburn on the PHLY Sixers Podcast.
Washburn was a guest on the show as a Celtics reporter to offer the Philly fans some knowledge about Jaylen Brown. He was talking bout the dynamic in Boston between Tatum and Brown, and this is where things went off the rails. Washburn claimed that things changed this year after Tatum missed the critical Game 7 in the playoffs against the Sixers that ended Boston’s season.
Gary Washburn spreading misinformation about Jayson Tatum
Then, unprompted, Washburn added, “Critical game in 2023, Miami Heat Game 7, Jayson sprains his ankle in the first two minutes, does not play the rest of the game. There’s certain things that I think Jaylen’s like, ‘at least I’m on the damn floor’”.
Criticizing Jayson for racing back from an Achilles tear, helping the team immensely, and being forced to miss that Game 7 (which was very likely not even his decision) is already a low blow and pretty unbecoming. But to make matters much, much worse, the part about the 2023 Game 7 is just completely untrue.
Yes, Tatum did badly sprain his ankle just moments into the game. He probably should have sat out the rest of the game. But he didn’t. He gutted it out and played 42 minutes on a bum ankle to try and save his team’s season and get them back to the NBA Finals.
Yo, @GwashburnGlobe, WTF is this revisionist history on a Sixers podcast?!?!? How can you call yourself a journalist by claiming that Tatum playing an entire game on a sprained ankle is “checking out?” https://t.co/Cjd9Nyeq9V
— Lucky's Lounge Podcast (@luckysloungepod) August 8, 2026
You’d think that would earn him some grace, but instead it seems the opposite has happened. And this is one of the biggest problems with NBA media and discourse. Tatum can’t win. Washburn is supposed to be a credible journalist who covers the Celtics, and he’s spreading blatant and harmful misinformation about the team’s best player on a Sixers podcast.
Celtics fans deserve better from the Boston Globe
That’s completely unacceptable, and of course, people are running with it and using it to slander JT and push this ridiculous false narrative. Now, we’re seeing all of the classic aggregation sites and accounts running with it and gaining credibility by quoting a reporter from the Boston Globe. For once, I can’t even blame the aggregators. This is all on Washburn. He has tried to apologize via replies on Twitter, but that’s simply not good enough; the damage is done.
I’m not sure what can even be done at this point. Washburn has always seemed to have a weird anti-Tatum bias that went hand in hand with a pro-Jaylen agenda. For years, Celtics fans have been battling on behalf of both of the Jays, only for the team’s own reporter to be sowing divisiveness.
It’s sad to see, and it’s pathetic on the part of Washburn and the Globe. It’s not like this was a small detail from ancient NBA lore; this is one of the biggest games and moments in recent Celtics history, and Gary completely botched it. Tatum already has enough to deal with, without this nonsense. Celtics fans and players alike deserve so much better.
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