Jayson Tatum isn’t exactly in a class of his own.
That’s the conclusion of 18 NBA coaches and executives, whom ESPN’s Tim Bontemps recently asked to determine a pecking order of the league’s second-year players. The anonymous survey asked 18 NBA power brokers to rank four sophomore stars — The Celtics forward; Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons; Utah Jazz Guard Donovan Mitchell and Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox — in order of around whom they’d most like to build their team.
Using a 4-3-2-1 points scale from first to fourth place, Tatum finished third in the poll, earning 43 points. Simmons was first with 55 points, Mitchell was second with 48, and Fox was fourth with 35.
Some of the voters’ comments provide insight into why he didn’t finish higher. They all consider Tatum a good player but differ on the subject of how great he might become.
“Tatum is, overall, the most well-rounded,” one voter said.
“Tatum might be Carmelo (Anthony),” one Western Conference executive said. “He needs the ball in his hands.”
“Tatum is a complementary player,” an East Eastern Conference executive said.
Tatum, 21, is averaging 16 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game in 31.3 minutes per game this season. Each of those numbers represent a slight improvement over his rookie-year production.
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