Jayson Tatum never blinked in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, going toe-to-toe with LeBron James in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 87-79 win.
Tatum finished with a team-high 24 points on 9-of-17 shooting with seven rebounds over 42 minutes for the Boston Celtics, and afterwards, James said the 20-year-old is “built for stardom.”
LeBron says Jayson Tatum is "built for stardom." Snapple facts. (via @nbatv) pic.twitter.com/hHCg8WF6YH
— SLAM Magazine (@SLAMonline) May 28, 2018
“I just love everything about the kid, the way he plays the game, his demeanor, where he comes from,” James said.
“I just know he’s built for stardom. He’s built for success. And that’s both on and off the floor.”
Tatum even dunked in LeBron’s grill, saying he “had to get him back” for what the 33-year-old did to him in Game 6.
Per the Boston Herald:
“I had to get him back for the two shots he hit on me in Cleveland,” the Celtics rookie said of James’ two game-breaking 3-pointers in Game 6.
There will be more from Tatum. It was appropriate that Paul Pierce took in the game from the front row, in a seat between Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck and Patriots owner Robert Kraft. Tatum’s first-year rise hasn’t been witnessed in the Garden since Pierce was a rookie.
“The postseason has been a lot of fun, from the first game to today,” Tatum said. “I’ve learned so much. I just enjoyed everything we accomplished, everything we went through. I just had so much fun out there each and every night, no matter if we won or lost, just how we competed and gave it our all. It was my first year, so I was out there having fun.
“Just learning everything that I didn’t know from the first game until today. It was such an adjustment the first year in the league – new teammates, new system, living on your own, traveling, playing so many games. I think the biggest thing was just getting used to it and comfortable. There were ups and downs, but I had great teammates. When times were tough they told me to stick with it and keep working. I was able to get more comfortable and have more confidence in myself throughout the season that I didn’t have early on.”
