Star Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum has shown himself to be something of a sponge throughout the course of his game, consciously building elements of his childhood idol and mentor Kobe Bryant, Celtics Hall of Fame alumnus Paul Pierce, and many other NBA legends’ style of play into his game successfully.
In a recent interview with the Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach, the St. Louis native shed some light on what NBA players he has more recently been watching and studying to juice up his game even further than he already has. And the impact of playing against some of these stars has added another dimension for Tatum.
“One thing I realized is playing some of these guys in the playoffs, you gain so much more respect for them,” he suggested.
Kings at Celtics: Boston explodes late in the fourth, blows out Sacramento 122-104 https://t.co/HRhINg7B5E
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“I watch a lot of (Kevin Durant),” began the Duke alum, perhaps unsurprisingly given his longtime admiration for KD.
“I watch a lot of (DeMar) DeRozan,” added Tatum, also understandable given how much DeRozan has punished Boston of late.
“I watch some older clips of Kawhi (Leonard),” he continued sensibly.
“I love watching (Joel) Embiid play,” said Tatum of his fellow Drew Hanlen client.
“I love watching Giannis (Antetokounmpo) play, even though we’re two totally different players,” suggested the Duke alum.
“Steph (Curry) and those guys (on the Golden State Warriors), you realize how hard it is to get to the Finals, and they’ve been to that (expletive) six times and won four,” offered Tatum with perhaps a bit of wistfulness.
“Jimmy Butler and how much of a competitor he is,” continued the Celtics star. “I feel like he doesn’t get enough credit … If you had to pick somebody on your team to go to war with, you’d definitely pick him.”
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