For Boston Celtics star forward Jayson Tatum, the path to a championship future is to stay grounded in the present.
“I never like to look into the future,” said Tatum in a recent interview with The Athletic’s Jared Weiss. “It’s just so unpredictable what can happen. The NBA changes so much every year. Every two, three years, and you just try to win.
“Every year, I’ve tried to win a championship. My first year, I wasn’t thinking about winning my fifth year. I was just trying to win then, and that’s what I’ll try to do this season,” suggested the St. Louis native.
Tatum and his Celtics squads struggled to punch a ticket to the NBA Finals until last season. Then the wear and tear of doing so against the Golden State Warriors proved too much to win it all with a relatively thin and unproven bench.
Shams: Kevin Durant reiterates trade request if Sean Marks, Steve Nash remain with Nets https://t.co/dz2ITB2BKy
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) August 8, 2022
Now, Boston has reloaded with a deeper, veteran rotation without giving up much to do so, and could still make moves to bolster its frontcourt and wing depth. But don’t ask the former Duke standout what he’d do if it were his choice.
“The cool part about his job is (now-team president) Brad (Stevens) doesn’t tell me how to do my job anymore,” Tatum smiled, thinking of how his former head coach has become the team’s top executive.
“He lets me do my thing. I let him do his thing. In all honesty, that’s his decision and that’s his job.”
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