Boston Celtics star forward Jayson Tatum has done significant justice to his potential 2022-23 NBA MVP campaign after just 11 games.
Before the start of the season, Tatum's odds of taking home the first NBA MVP award of his career were +1200, which previously stood as the sixth-best chance, trailing Luka Doncic (+400), Joel Embiid (+600), Giannis Antetokounmpo (+650), Kevin Durant (+850) and Nikola Jokic (+900) -- according to BetMGM.
However Tatum's odds have skyrocketed since the start of the season.
Tatum has risen to third with +600 odds, which massively improved his chances before opening night, with Antetokounmpo (+240) and Doncic (+275) as the only players ahead of him before the Celtics tipped off against the Denver Nuggets on Friday.
So, what's Tatum done?
Well, the 24-year-old has averaged 31.2 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4.1 assists while shooting 49.8% from the field, 37.9% from 3-point range and 87.5% from the free-throw line. In the first five games for the month of November -- in which the Celtics went 4-1 -- Tatum scored over 25 points in each contest while shooting over 47% from the field in three. He also notched two double-doubles in the process.
On Oct. 22 against the Orlando Magic, Tatum reached an all-time Celtics milestone which placed him in some noteworthy company. After delivering his first 40-point showing in that contest, Tatum reached 104 total points on the season -- at the time -- which made him the highest-scoring Celtic of all-time through three games played, surpassing ex-NBA great Larry Bird.
It's also worth mentioning that when Bird scored 96 points through his first three games in the 1984-85 season, he proceeded to win the NBA MVP award.
