Jayson Tatum holds the Larry O'Brien trophy after winning the NBA Finals on June 17, 2024. Image by Brian Babineau via Getty Images
Jayson Tatum can add a new line to his resume that the majority of NBA players have not or will not, and that is ‘NBA champion.’ Tatum won the 2024 title with the Boston Celtics on Monday night, bringing the franchise’s record 18th title to Boston and their first since 2008, snapping a 16-year skid.
Tatum now joins the long list of Celtics legends to win a title, along with his partner Jaylen Brown, who won the Finals MVP. The Celtics clinched the title on Monday thanks to Tatum’s elite play, in a game which he notched 31 points, eight rebounds, and 11 assists.
His 31 points in the game also gave him 2,711 career points in the playoffs. That is the most for any player in NBA history under age 26, breaking the previous record of 2,694 by the late, great Kobe Bryant.
Ten Times Better
After the magical run that the Celtics embarked on, which began at the very start of the regular season and ended with the Larry O’Brien trophy in Tatum’s hands, Tatum stated that he always dreamed of the feeling of winning a championship.
“Now I can walk in those rooms and be a part of that,” said Tatum. “It’s a hell of a feeling. I dreamed about what this would feel like, and it’s ten times better.”
Now that he’s done so, however, the feeling is “ten times better” than he ever imagined. Tatum has reached the Conference Finals in five of his seven pro seasons, and has reached two NBA Finals. The first time he was there, in 2022, he experienced defeat. Now, he has experienced the opposite.
Remarkable Play
Tatum defined the 2024 NBA playoffs with his remarkable play. In the 19 playoff games the Celtics played, he averaged 25 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 6.3 assists. He also shot 42.7 percent from the field. The Celtics went 16-3 in those games.
The playoffs were just a continuation of his regular season, in which he constantly lit up the court. 26.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 4.9 assists were his averages per game, along with 47.1 percent shooting from the field and 37.6 percent shooting from three-point range.
The 2023-24 season was Jayson Tatum’s breakout season. He has been a superstar in the league for the past few seasons. But now, there is little doubt that Tatum has officially cemented his legacy as a basketball legend.
