Boston Celtics: 3 takeaways from comeback win over Grizzlies

3. Jayson Tatum is the Celtics’ second-best player

With all due to respect to the big man in the middle, Jayson Tatum has become the Boston Celtics’ second-best player, full stop. With Gordon Hayward making small strides in his progress from last season’s devastating injury, the 1B slot has been open for taking this season, and Tatum has claimed it with his all-around fantastic play.

As the team’s second-leading scorer, everyone knew going into the season that Tatum was going to stretch the floor with his outside shooting and open up the game for Irving and Hayward to play the two-man game with Horford, giving them space to pick-and-roll/pop, or kick it out for the open 3.

While his 3-point percentage has fallen from his lights out rookie campaign of 43.4 percent, he is still shooting a very respectable 38.6, and has added layers to his offensive game that make him a nightmare for opposing teams to prepare for.

The Grizzlies game is an excellent example of Tatum’s development as a well-rounded player that consistently makes a positive impact for his team.

A scorer to his core, Tatum took a step back from that role on Saturday and put up just seven points on six shots. Instead, he deferred to his teammates, was second on the team in assists with five, and pulled down a team-high eight rebounds in a game against two traditional bigs, which typically results in Boston getting killed on the boards.

Also, during the comeback stretch in the third and fourth quarters, Tatum made some big plays on defense. With the Celtics in need of stops and the team playing an aggressive, switch-everything defense, Tatum found himself guarding Marc Gasol a few times in the post. He did an excellent job denying him the ball, coming up with clutch steals to swing momentum back to Boston.

Even when he is not scoring, Jayson Tatum has been finding ways to make the team better when he is on the court. He was third on the team during the Grizzlies game in plus/minus, and would’ve been second if not for Guerschon Yabusele‘s outrageous stretch during the comeback.

With his talent level and skill-set, the sky is the limit for this still only 20-year-old as he carves out a leading role on a contending team.