Jayson Tatum Completely Buried The Sixers (Again) Without Telling A Single Lie
I'll admit, I gasped. I mean talk about a clean shot/instant kill. Like the Celtics greats before him (Isaiah) Jayson Tatum joined known Sixers fan Kevin Hart for a little cold tub interview and he most certainly did not hold back. I mean that's a death blow if I've ever seen one and the best part? I'm having a hard time spotting the lie.
Jayson Tatum has faced the Sixers in a total of 16 playoff games. His current record is 12-4. You could make the case that it should actually be 14-2 considering the Celts lost Game 1 this Spring due to Malcolm Brogdon throwing the ball to Tyrese Maxey in the final seconds and then Jaylen leaving James Harden in Game 4 for a game winning three, but even with those losses on his record let's be very clear about something.
Jayson Tatum owns that franchise. Period. Full stop. In their building, in his building, it doesn't really seem to matter.
He had that response to Hart lined up so insanely quick which tells me that's how you know he truly believes it. I mean, even Embiid admits that the Celtics own him and the entire Process so it shouldn't be that surprising. Look, again I ask you to spot the lie. How many more times do we have to hear about the Sixers passing the Celtics and all that regular season hype just for Jayson Tatum to completely obliterate them when it matters most? It hasn't mattered what version of the Process he sees. They simply do not have the talent to shut him down. First it was Robert Covington (4-1 BOS win), then it was Matisse Thybulle (4-0 sweep), then it was PJ Tucker (4-3 series win). In his Celtics postseason career, Tatum averages 26.8 points a game on 48/38% splits against the Sixers. You could also add in his regular season dominance as well if you'd like
and it's clear that all Tatum seems to do is torment this franchise. That's tough for them.
I'll say this though. This may have all been fun and games but from here on out Tatum can't ever lose to the Sixers in a playoff series as long as he's still searching for his first title. OK, stop laughing, I'm serious.
Even if he was "joking", we all know he wasn't, so now he has to make sure his game backs this up. You can't be talking like that and then find yourself on the wrong side of a playoff series against PHI, so while history tells us he'll be just fine, it's just something to keep in your back pocket.