Jayson Tatum is confused why people would want him and/or Jaylen Brown to leave Boston.
Tatum joined JJ Redick’s podcast The Old Man & the Three to discuss these rumors and offer his opinion.
“I couldn’t imagine why you wouldn’t want to have two of the best players that are under 25 on your team,” Tatum said.
Tatum said the duo has talked about these rumors.
“Like, we asked each other like, ’Yo, do you want to be here?‘ And we both was like, ’Yeah,‘“ Tatum said.
Tatum added that the duo has won way more games together than they have lost.
The Celtics have made the playoffs every year since Brown (who joined in 2016) and Tatum (who joined in 2017) have been on the roster. Brown has made it to the conference finals three times, while Tatum has been twice.
”Like, you really think about it, we’ve had way more success together than, you know, this year and what we didn‘t accomplish last year. ... And, like you said, I think we’re both still very far from our prime. And I think what people don’t understand is like, al; right, if you want to break us up, the grass is not always greener. There’s not a lot of guys in NBA like JB [Brown]. Or if you want to get rid of me, not to toot my own horn, but I think I‘m one of the best players.“
Tatum, who will be playing in this weekend’s NBA All-Star game, is averaging 25.7 points per game. Brown, who was selected in last season’s All-Star game, is currently averaging 23.7 points per game.
At 34–26, the Celtics are currently in sixth place in the Eastern Conference.
- What We Did and Didn’t See Coming This NBA Season
- NBA Rising Stars: Warriors Rookie Jonathan Kuminga Has Lofty Goals
- The Defensive Player of the Year Race Is More Open Than Ever
- Inside The Celtics: Coach K's Message to Danny Ainge, Brad Stevens When Celtics Were Deciding Whether to Draft Jayson Tatum
For more Boston Celtics coverage, head over to Inside The Celtics.
