Team USA Men's Basketball just won their fourth straight gold medal at the Olympics in an 87-82 victory over France on Saturday, thanks in large part to Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum's 19 points and 7 rebounds on 8-14 shooting. Following the victory, Tatum posted a celebration tweet, dubbing himself with a new nickname: Gold Medal Jay.
An interesting nickname for sure. Though it hasn't quite caught on yet, Celtics teammate and partner in crime Jaylen Brown took to Twitter to congratulate the young star on his big accomplishment:
The St. Louis Representative @jaytatum0 just got him a gold medal🥇 💯 that’s tuff !!
— Jaylen Brown (@FCHWPO) August 7, 2021
Defensive stalwart Marcus Smart was also thrilled to see Tatum's success:
Nothing tastes better than Gold, medium well, with a side of 🔴⚪️🔵! Congrats @jaytatum0 on your GOLD! Solid and 🔥 as always! Proud of you and @usabasketball ! pic.twitter.com/Hf34vxPSxr
— marcus smart (@smart_MS3) August 7, 2021
It's great to see the camaraderie that the Celtics have for each other – this kind of chemistry is exactly what drives teams to succeed against adversity come the playoffs and other big moments. Unfortunately, Boston was unable to unleash their full potential in the playoffs this year, as Brown went down with a wrist injury right in his best season yet before the most crucial stretch of the campaign. Tatum was still able to lead the Celtics to a win against the title-favorite Brooklyn Nets in a huge 50-point game, but the C's would still end up losing the series 4 game to 1 in a gentleman's sweep.
The gold medal is quite the consolation prize for Tatum, however, and his 19 points off the bench once again showed his penchant for showing up to ball in big games.
Though the Celtics were relatively quiet this past offseason, opting to avoid trading for or signing marquee names to bolster the roster, their future is promising. Tatum, Brown, and Smart will only continue to improve, while rising young talent like Payton Pritchard, Robert Williams III, and Grant Williams will all make big strides this year as well.
Despite a loaded Eastern Conference, you can't count out any team with a talent like Jayson Tatum. Don't sleep on the C's next year.
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