BOSTON — It was clear that Jayson Tatum was going to be a huge part of the Boston Celtics’ future when they drafted him with the No.3 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. But the talented 19-year-old wasn’t expected to log heavy minutes and be one of Boston’s go-to guys through the first 22 games.
Things change.
When the Celtics lost All-Star forward Gordon Hayward to a gruesome ankle injury just five minutes into the 2017-18 NBA season, Tatum’s role expanded.
The Duke product is averaging 13.7 points and shooting 49.7 percent from the field while playing 30.6 minutes per game early in the season, and the Celtics will continue to ask more of him as the season heads into 2018.
“Well, you know, I think the biggest thing is that we need him,” Stevens said Thursday when asked about Tatum’s contributions at such a young age.” And we’re asking him every day to play different roles, do different things, and sometimes, in actions, be a part of the action and be a go-to guy in the action, and other times be a guy that spaces the floor for us.
“Defensively he continues to do a lot of good things, but has found some matchups where he can get a lot better, and learn from that and hopefully, play better against them the second or third time he plays them. He’s a good player and we need him. I’m kind of over how young he is because we need him.”
The Celtics have asked a lot of their prized rookie through 22 games, and he’s answered the bell in his team’s moment of need.
