Injuries have been a major thorn on the side of the Boston Celtics early in the season. Among others, Jaylen Brown has been in and out of the lineup as the C's struggle to find consistency within their ranks. Jayson Tatum has been Boston's key cog in the first quarter of the campaign, and while he's remained healthy for the entire season thus far, his heavy minutes could now be catching up to him.
In his first four years in the league, Tatum averaged 32.7 minutes per game. Right now, he's playing a career-high 36.5 minutes per contest for the Celtics, which actually ranks second-most in the entire NBA. For his part, however, Boston head coach Ime Udoka does not appear to be concerned with his star player's heavy workload. As a matter of fact, the first-year coach does not believe that this will be an issue for Tatum moving forward:
“I don’t necessarily think 36 is a big thing for him,” Udoka said, via Brian Robb of Mass Live. “Given that Jaylen’s been out the amount he has and we’ve had to rely on (Tatum) more, that obviously was ramped up a little bit beside the extra overtimes, the six extra periods there tacking on some minutes. But he’s a guy that’s coped well.”
Udoka went on to praise Tatum's conditioning. According to the 44-year-old shot-caller, Tatum is now reaping the benefits of his hard work in the gym:
“He’s finding his rhythm and as I’ve mentioned, I’ve never seen a guy his age take care of himself and prepare the way he does with treatment, getting the shots he needs, in the weight room,” he added. “He’s living in the gym, so he takes care of himself and it’s not a coincidence that he’s been able to play those high minutes and play at a high level.”
Tatum has been nothing short of amazing for the Celtics this season. The All-Star forward is currently averaging 25.2 points on 40.6 percent shooting, 8.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 2.7 triples as he's led Boston to a 13-11 record. Tatums is well aware of the fact that he's one of the best young players in the NBA, but he's by no means resting on his laurels. The 23-year-old knows full well that he needs to work extremely hard to constantly elevate his game to the next level. Right now, it looks like he's doing just that.
The Celtics lost their starting point guard, Kemba Walker, during the offseason. This has led to more playmaking opportunities for Tatum, which has been one of the bright spots of his season thus far. Coach Udoka could not agree any more:
“We’ve hit him quite a few times with not settling, making a quick decision and when he does that he can get to the basket or make plays for other guys,” Udoka said. “He had some success quite a few games ago and saw himself getting to the free throw line. Saw he was missing shots earlier in the year that we love for him getting to the basket. I think he just saw the success of getting to the basket, getting to the free throw line, and how that opened everything up for himself and has carried that over.
“We love the balance and the fact that he can score in the post, pick-and-roll and iso – anywhere on the court. But we love him getting downhill and being aggressive there, and driving and kicking for his teammates for sure.”
“Stay confident,” Udoka said. “Stay consistent in his process of what he does. He doesn’t waiver from that, whether he scores 40 or has a bad shooting night. He comes in and does what he does every day like I just mentioned. So his professionalism is off the charts, especially for a guy his age, like I said.
“I’ve been around a long time and never seen a guy at that age and focus on taking care of himself to the extent that he does. It’s a credit to him that he’s able to play those minutes. 36 isn’t a crazy high number. Like I said, we’ve had to rely on him probably more than we would have liked to early with guys being out. But he’s taken on a heavy load and stays consistent with what he does every game, every practice, every day.”
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