The 2019-20 NBA season can be tagged as the breakout year of Boston Celtics swingman Jayson Tatum. After being named an All-Star for the first time, he followed it up by recording a strong February that led him to win the Player of the Month honor for the Eastern Conference.
Now, joining John Goodman’s “Good ‘N Plenty” podcast, Tatum shared what motivated his incredible February stretch that saw him put up 30.7 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.2 steals, and 1.3 blocked shots per game in the said month.
According to Tatum, he badly wanted to make the All-Star team this year. He admitted that his main priority was to win, but at the same time, he wanted to spice up his individual accolades as well. With that said, after reaching his goal, the Celtics star felt a huge weight was taken off his shoulders.
“It was like the weight of the world was lifted off my shoulders when I found out. And kind of ever since then I’ve just played a lot more relaxed and a lot more free, and I think that had a lot to do with it.” Jayson Tatum said, as transcribed by Sean T. McGuire of NESN.
However, that was not the only motivation that pushed the 22-year-old Celtics youngster to make the giant leap. As Tatum noted, the death of Kobe Bryant last January played a big part in his transformation and change in mindset.
“It was kind of intertwined,” Tatum said. “All those things happened at the same time,| Tatum added.
Basketball fans will hear more of Tatum in the coming years. After all, the 2019-20 season is just the beginning of his rise to superstardom.
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