ESPN Analyst Calls Jayson Tatum’s Game Vs. Lakers ‘Signature Moment’

Jayson Tatum had one of the best performances of his season Tuesday night and maybe of his career to this point.

The Celtics defeated the Lakers, 122-118, in a come-from-behind overtime win after Boston saw itself nearly choke away the game in the fourth quarter as Los Angeles went on a 31-5 run. Tatum played savior for the Celtics, finishing with 44 points, including a game-tying fadeaway jumper to tie the game at the end of the fourth quarter over LeBron James.

It’s no secret the 24-year-old has been playing at an MVP-like level this season, but this was just another feather in the cap as he tries to lead the Celtics back to the NBA Finals.

ESPN analyst Tim Legler was asked about what he thought of Tatum’s performance on Wednesday’s “NBA Today” and was willing to go as far as calling it a “signature moment” for not only the Celtics star’s season but his career.

“What was so cool about that whole moment to me, the way they came back and that shot he had over LeBron,” Legler said, per the ESPN video. “It made me think about Kevin Durant earlier in his career when he’d face LeBron. I always felt there was this thing there where he was deferring a little bit. This was a guy he idolized and now he’s playing against him. And you gotta get back that moment. Think about this. When LeBron won his first title, I think Jayson Tatum was in the sixth grade. He was like 12 years old so you know he looked up to this dude. This was the dude.

“And now you get a chance to go at him, especially coming off back-to-back games where he finally hit a little bit of a blip. He’s been unbelievable all year. Did not play as well the last couple of games. Last game of the road trip, you’re headed back home. Marquee game, national TV against this team, against this guy and he gets that moment to send the game to overtime. So to me, this has just continued to be the ascension of who Jayson Tatum is. We know he’s on this level. Could be the MVP this year. Maybe he leads the team to a title this year. But that, for me, was a signature moment so far for Jayson Tatum this season and maybe his career.”

Tatum has raised his play this season as he is averaging 30.2 points per game, 8.3 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and is shooting 47 percent from the field. His chase for a ring could lead to many more signature moments this season and beyond.