Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics will embark on their journey of defending their Eastern Conference title next season -- a task that places Boston's young star "under pressure" according to a former NBA hooper and current ESPN analyst.
Tim Legler spoke on ESPN's "NBA Today" on Thursday during a discussion surrounding which player is under the most pressure next season. Legler then proposed the 2022 Eastern Conference MVP as his player of choice.
"I think Jayson Tatum is under some pressure," Legler said. "Jayson Tatum did not play well in the NBA Finals. He was outplayed by Golden State's best player... and for Boston to win that series, their best player needed to be the best player on the floor often enough for them to get to four (games) before Golden State got to four."
Legler added: "This is a team expecting now to win it all and Jayson Tatum did not play well when they got to that final stage. He's gonna have to answer that. Regardless of what he does in the regular season, people are gonna be waiting to see... will he be better than he was last year and help lead Boston to a championship?"
Tatum finished his first career NBA Finals effort averaging 21.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, and seven assists while shooting 36.7% from the field, 45.5% from three, and 65.6% from the free throw line. That performance came following his MVP-seizing series against the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals.
In seven games against the Heat, Tatum averaged 25 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 5.6 assists while shooting 46.2% from the field, 35.3% from three, and 86% from the line.
With Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens and the front office improving this offseason, Legler is correct in expectations remaining high for 2023.
