The Boston Celtics have spent the entire season preparing for this moment. The regular season is nearly over, and they locked up the second seed in the Eastern Conference behind the Cleveland Cavaliers weeks ago. Jayson Tatum will be the one to lead the team into the playoffs, and an NBA champion has predicted big things for him.
“Who is the biggest star heading into the playoffs?” Kendrick Perkins was asked on ESPN’s First Take. “I gotta go with Jayson Tatum,” the former center answered without hesitation. “He’s a guy that has been slept on this entire season. I have him top five in the MVP conversation, and I think he’s gonna be on the mission.”
Expanding on why he believes the Boston forward will shine this postseason, Perkins didn’t hold back. “I also believe that he has the most to prove. Jayon Tatum… has been disrespected. I’ve never seen an NBA champion more disrespected,” he said.
“I saw Jayson Tatum after he won this NBA championship, from the fact of, he didn’t get the Finals MVP, he didn’t get Conference Finals MVP, he didn’t have the aura after he won the championship. He was disrespected when he went to the Olympics,” the 2008 NBA champion added. “He’s been criticized and called everything but a child of God, instead of respecting what this man has brought to the table.”
Kendrick Perkins attends the Ruffles NBA All-Star Celebrity Game during the 2022 NBA All-Star Weekend at Wolstein Center on February 18, 2022.
Perkins on Tatum’s performance this season
Perkins spoke about Tatum’s production throughout the current season: “People take away from the MVP conversation, and they say, ‘You know what? Oh, he has the pieces around him.’” Kendrick then offered a firm defense of Jayson. “He’s still putting up 28 points a night. He’s still giving you nine rebounds and six assists with the personnel.”
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The former center also compared the Boston star to another standout in the East with the Cavaliers. “So you look at a guy like Tatum and look at a guy like Donovan Mitchell, Donovan Mitchell has the pieces, and guess what? His numbers have dropped,” Perkins said.
New face of the NBA debate
Perkins made it clear he has high expectations for what the forward of the Celtics can achieve in the playoffs. “I look at what Jayson Tatum has brought to the table,” he said. “And I look at how he has a chip on his shoulder, he’s gonna remind the world, especially with Jaylen Brown not being 100% of who the hell he is.”
And finally, the ESPN analyst stated that Tatum’s playoff performance could be what solidifies his place as the next superstar of the league: “I think this is the postseason for him to not only go out there and get another championship, but to go get a Finals MVP, and to make sure he remind everybody that when LeBron (James) and Steph (Curry) leave, y’all better mention my name for it being the next face of the NBA.”
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