Just a couple weeks after Stephen Curry’s historic 50 point performance against the Sacramento Kings in game 7, Jayson Tatum has taken the crown from him with a special 51 point performance that led the Celtics to rout the Philadelphia 76ers.
At just the age of 25 years old, Tatum is headed to his 4th conference finals, and potentially his 2nd finals appearance.
The Celtics will face the Miami Heat for the 3rd time in the last 4 years, all of which have been in the conference finals.
Although Tatum is 25, his playoff experience runs deep through him, as he’s never missed the playoffs in his 6 seasons in the NBA. Tatum has played in 86 playoff games and started all of them, which goes to show how valuable he’s been to the Celtics ever since they drafted him.
In this year’s playoffs, Tatum has averaged 28.2 points, 10.6 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game. His dominance has been shown in every game, even if he struggles in stretches. In game 6 of the conference semi-finals, Tatum was shooting 1/13 from the field, and had put up just 3 points heading into the 4th quarter. In a do or die game for the Celtics, Tatum exploded ‘for with 16 points in the 4th quarter, and closed out the game hitting 4 three pointers. After the game, Tatum said in an interview, “I’m humbly, one of the best basketball players in the world.”
A couple days after proclaiming himself as one of the best in the world, Tatum went on to score the most points in game 7 history. Tatum also went on grab 13 rebounds and dish out 5 assists, leading his team in all categories. Doc Rivers was asked postgame, “How many other playoff games do you think were of this caliber?” Doc Rivers responded saying, “I’ve seen one. It was in this building.. it was LeBron.” Rivers was referencing Lebron’s 45 point game 7 performance for the Miami Heat against the Celtics in 2012.
Tatum has already justified himself as one of the best players in the world, and at just 25 years of age, the sky is the limit for him. The next step for Tatum and the Boston Celtics is winning a championship, something more valuable then any individual records.
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