Jayson Tatum Defends Brad Stevens As Celtics’ Skid Continues

The Boston Celtics are amid one of their worst skids in recent memory, and fingers are being pointed all over the place.

One person that’s been defended consistently, however, is Brad Stevens.

The Celtics head coach has received plenty of criticism from fans and the media, but members of the organization have been quick to refute. Wyc Grousbeck and Danny Ainge already have spoken up in separate interviews, and now, it’s Jayson Tatum’s turn.

The 22-year-old told Boston.com’s Tom Westerholm that Stevens shouldn’t shoulder all the blame here. It’s a team issue.

“Brad is great,” Tatum said. “He always has us prepared. It’s not like the lack of preparation with us, or game planning, or not knowing what we need to know, from a coaching standpoint.

“We’re all one team. So everyone has to take some take some blame, but Brad does more than his part. And I’m a big believer that there’s still other guys on the court that have to make the difference. So it’s not like it’s Brad’s fault. We’re all on the same team, the same organization. I guess we all could be better.”

You can say that again.

The Celtics have four games left until the week-long All-Star break. And hopefully, they can use that time to recharge (even though Tatum and Jaylen Brown are Eastern Conference reserves).