Jayson Tatum has a bad rap of complaining too much to the refs on call and non-calls. But a hard late-game hard foul on Tatum by Caleb Martin - and Jayson's (non) response - is a turning point for him in my mind.
After being undercut by Martin in Boston's win over the Heat last night, Tatum hit the floor really hard - and I fully expected him to be injured or to dramatize it. Neither happened.
Instead, the Celtics main star jumped quickly to his feet and walked away. No faking an injury. No complaining. No confrontation with Martin. No fisticuffs and an ejection. His (non) actions were so "Larry Bird-like".
Could this be a turning point for Jayson Tatum? I think so. What we saw was a mature superstar reacting as such. He left the confrontations to his teammate, Jaylen Brown, who in turn picked up a technical foul - as did Caleb Martin. Congrats, Jayson, on all of that. Oh, and also on your triple-double.
It’s great that Tatum didn’t react. It’s also great that Brown did! Every team needs an enforcer in the playoffs and Jalen is our most physical player. Can’t overdo it and get dumb fouls, but he did send a message…
ReplyDeleteI honestly thought that Tatum would either be injured - or go into an act that he was. But no. He did it perfectly.
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