It took five trips to the Eastern Conference Finals and making it to the NBA Finals twice before Jayson Tatum finally cashed in. Tatum is now an NBA champion. So are the rest of the 2023-24 Boston Celtics team.
“It’s a surreal feeling. Still has not really kicked in yet,” Tatum said after the Celtics had downed the Dallas Mavericks in five games to capture the NBA title.
“Just trying, I guess, to enjoy the moment. I kept saying, ‘Wow.’These last seven years have been a roller coaster, up and down. I had to listen to all the s— that people said about me, and tonight, it was worth it. Oh, my God,” Tatum added.
#CELTICSWIN pic.twitter.com/gubLv8wYq5
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) June 18, 2024
These NBA Finals were not exactly Tatum’s finest moments as a pro. In the first four games of the series, Tatum struggled to shoot the ball from the field. Tatum shot less than 40 percent from the field in the first two games. In a Game 4 defeat to the Mavericks, Tatum scored just 15 points.
Well, redemption can be something else. In Game 5, Tatum proved he is the Alpha leader on this Celtics squad, leading Boston to a runaway 106-88 series-clinching win. Taking his game to championship level, Tatum dropped 31 points, pushed out 11 assists and grabbed eight rebounds in the Celtics’ blowout victory.
“You know, over the last couple years, we had some tough losses at home in the playoffs,” Tatum said. “We’ve lost the NBA Championship at home in front of our fans. We had a chance to beat Miami in Game 6 a few years ago and lost that one.”
“So to have a big win, the biggest win that you could have in front of your home crowd, I felt like that was really important to go out there and do everything in my power to make sure we won this game tonight,” he added.
Getting over the hump to win the title took some time for Tatum and his green crew. And it took growing pains. Two years ago, Tatum and the Celtics were up 2-1 on Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals, only to lose the final three games to give up the ghost in that series.
Last season left a sour taste in the mouths of the Celtics. After reaching the Eastern Conference Finals to square off against the Miami Heat, Tatum and the Celtics lost the first three games of the series before rallying to tie it at 3-3.
GOOD MORNING TO THE CHAMPS ? pic.twitter.com/uFNrG8zxWx
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) June 18, 2024
Jimmy Butler and the Heat would eventually close out Boston in seven games and send Tatum and the Celtics into the offseason to absorb a heavy-handed series defeat.
“I think we learned,” NBA Finals MVP Jaylen Brown said. “I think we learned from all of our mistakes. All of our adversity has made us stronger, made us tougher. All season you could see it. We started from the jump. We made all the sacrifices. We played both ends of the ball at a high level. We didn’t skip any steps. And this was the result.
This time around, Tatum and the Celtics refused to be denied again.
“It took being relentless,” Tatum said. “It took being on the other side of this and losing in the Finals and being at literally the lowest point in a basketball career that you could be, to next year, to the following year, thinking that was going to be the time, and come up short again.”
All those pitstops of falling short proved to be beneficial, Tatum went on to say.
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) June 18, 2024
“So, I mean, people have said it before. But coming up short and having failures makes this moment that much better. Because you know what it feels like to lose,” Tatum explained. “You know what it feels like to be on the other side of this and be in the locker room and hearing the other team celebrating, hearing them celebrate on your home floor. That was devastating.”
Tatum has felt the sting of losing in a championship battle. He is now enjoying the fruits of being called an NBA champion and describes the feeling as incomparable to any other emotion he’s felt as a pro.
“I mean, maybe getting drafted,” Tatum said. “That’s something that you dream about. But this is at the top of the mountain. To be able to say we did it, that we came together and we won a championship.
“Banner No. 18 has been hanging over our head for so many years. To know that we’re going to be engraved in history, and it still hasn’t like registered. I’m just still trying to process it all. But we did it. We won a championship,” Tatum added.
Top Image Photo Caption: Boston Celtics’ Jayson Tatum celebrates after scoring during the first half of Game 5 of the NBA basketball finals against the Dallas Mavericks, Monday, June 17, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
Dennis has covered and written about politics, crime, social justice, sports, and entertainment. Dennis currently covers the NFL, MLB, NBA, NCAA, and Olympic sports. Dennis is the editor of News4usonline.com and serves as the publisher of the Compton Bulletin newspaper. He earned a journalism degree from Howard University.