"This Is Idiotic!": Celtics President Rips Into Tatum Critics

 

A recent ESPN story brought into question Boston Celtics' star Jayson Tatum's commitment to win, according to an anonymous Eastern Conference assistant coach. “Jayson Tatum is about Jayson Tatum. I don’t think he cares about winning now, and if he does, it is on his terms,” said the unnamed assistant about Tatum. “He doesn’t want to score 15 and win. He wants to score 39 and win.”

Celtics' president Brad Stevens has fired back on all cylinders, speaking on Boston radio 98.5 The Sports Hub. "This is idiotic!", Stevens said he told those around him. 

I thought that quote was absolutely ridiculous, to be honest. I don’t ever react to that stuff and I actually sent a note to one of the people I work with like, ‘This is idiotic.’ Just be around this guy (Tatum) every day. That guy loves to win. He’s sitting there with his feet in the ice bucket after every game that we lose and he looks despondent. This guy’s competitive. I know that for a fact. I’m glad he’s on our team.

Stevens continued, “If you can’t put your name on it, don’t say it. There is no way that assistant would put his name on that quote because, first of all, he has never been around Jayson. Secondly, Jayson would kill him every time he played him for the rest of his career."

Earlier this season, Celtics guard Marcus Smart called out Tatum and Jaylen Brown for not creating enough for others on the team. That led to an emotional players-only team meeting, and that, in turn, has been followed by 8 wins in 11 games. 

But that hasn't stopped the naysayers from challenging the Celtics, as witnessed in the ESPN article. Stevens, though, isn't having any of it, and tried to convince anyone listening that he was taking it all "with such a grain of salt."

Photo Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports