Last season, the Boston Celtics secured their 18th NBA title, surpassing the Los Angeles Lakers and solidifying their place as the winningest franchise in league history. They reached the top led by Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. However, some believe the team hasn’t received the recognition it merits, including Kendrick Perkins.
“Why are the Celtics so disrespected?” Perkins questioned on ESPN. “When it comes down to champions, they are the most disrespected champions in NBA history,” said the former center, who knows what he’s talking about, having been a champion with Boston in the 2007-08 season.
“All you hear about is how easy of a ride they had last year, how Jayson Tatum is not this, how he didn’t play in the Olympics. All this,” Kendrick added. “But you know what? This is a great basketball team.”
Perkins then listed several qualities that, in his opinion, make the Celtics one of the best teams in the league: “Hey guys, you can freaking play. Jayson Tatum is really really good, Jaylen Brown, one of the best two-way players in the game. Payton Pritchard, Sixth Man of the Year. They got depth at the Big position. What else do I have to say?”
Is Tatum undervalued?
This debate also touches on whether Jayson Tatum gets the recognition he deserves in NBA, a topic the Celtics’ forward addressed in a recent interview with The Washington Post.
“Honestly, no,” Tatum said when asked if he felt appropriately valued in the NBA. “If you took the name and the face away from all my accomplishments and you’re just like, ‘This is what this Player A accomplished at 26,’ people would talk about me a lot differently.”
Paul Pierce agrees with these opinions
Another player who shined with the Boston Celtics for years and was a champion in 2008 is Paul Pierce. The former small forward also recently shared his thoughts on the debate surrounding Jayson Tatum’s lack of recognition and offered a surprising explanation for it.
“Cause he plays for Boston. That’s just what it is,” Pierce said on the Ticket and The Truth podcast. “Every player through Boston, even Larry Bird, wasn’t that appreciated. At one point, he was the best player in the league, but it was always Magic. Boston is the most hated franchise, hated team in all of sports.”
Pierce then highlighted Tatum’s accomplishments. “The guy has been to six conference finals, bro, in eight years. Two finals in eight years. If you match that up with KD (Kevin Durant) and all the stars, they didn’t do that,” he said. “He just doesn’t get his due. I said like last year, he’s the best American player. I still think that.”