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LeBron James thinks Jayson Tatum's playoff resume is elite for only being 26 years old
NBAWednesday, 20 March 2024 at 14:15
LeBron James on the podcast that he is doing with J.J. Reddick called "Mind The Game" thinks Jayson Tatum only being 26 still, that is playoff resume is elite. Tatum who was the third overall pick back in 2017 has made the playoffs every year of his career making it to the Eastern Conference Finals four times and the NBA Finals just once.
Jayson Tatum's Playoff History
Going back too were it all started when he was the third overall pick for the Boston Celtics in the 2017 draft out of Duke. In his rookie season he was asked to do a lot from what is typically asked from a rookie and averaged 13.9 points per game to go along with 5.0 rebounds per game. He helped get his team to the second seed in the playoffs, making it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals and going toe-to-toe with LeBron James who was on the Cleveland Cavaliers. However he fell short and lost in game seven to LeBron. In the following year he only increased his points per game to 15.7 and ended up loosing in the Conference Semifinals to the Milwaukee Bucks. In the 2019-2020 season he took a big step up averaging 23.4 points per game and became an All-Star for the first time. Unfortunately he would loose to the Miami Heat in the bubble in the Conference Finals. The next year they lost in the first round to the Nets, however in the 2021-2022 NBA season Tatum finally made it too the NBA Finals and unfortunately could not get passed the Golden State Warriors. Then last year they made it back to the Eastern Conference Finals but lost to the Miami Heat again.
Is Tatum being too heavily criticized for not having won a ring yet
First, before we can answer this question let's look at some other all time greats when they first won their ring. LeBron James didn't win his first ring until he was 27. Kevin Durant and Nikola Jokic didn't when their first ring until they were 28. Steph Curry didn't win one until he was 26. Michael Jordan was 28 when he won his first ring. Finally, Shaquille O'Neal was 27 when he won his first. These are just some of the all time greats who are older than Tatum is right now when they won their first ring. There are some like Kobe Bryant who won a championship at a younger age but typically players don't win until their late 20's early 30s. Now, going back to the question is Tatum being too heavily criticized for not having won a ring yet despite being to the playoffs every year of his career. With everything we have mentioned I think it is safe to say that he is being too heavily criticized for not winning a ring yet when many all time greats at his age hadn't won one yet either. I agree with LeBron that his playoff resume for someone that is only 26 still is pretty elite and should get more recognition and respect for what he has done so far. The Celtics this year are currently 54-14 with the best record in basketball and have played like the best team all-year are in prime position for another deep playoff run. Tatum and the Celtics have all the pieces this year and this possibly could be the year where Tatum finally wins his first ring.
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