Celtics news: Jayson Tatum sees 'realistic chance' of Boston winning title

Boston Celtics All-Star Jayson Tatum is feeling confident about his team's chances when the NBA resumes its season in Orlando later this July.

Tatum told reporters on a Saturday conference call that he believes his Celtics — currently the Eastern Conference's no. 3 seed at 43-21 — have a “realistic chance” to win the franchise's 18th (and oddest) NBA championship.

“I think that's the mentality you should have,” Jayson Tatum said on a Zoom chat after the Celtics workout, per NBC Sports. “I've never been on a team in my life — whether it was high school or college or since I have been on the Celtics — where I didn't think we should settle for like third place.”

“We have the talent, the experience, the depth, and we compete with the best of them. We scrap, we play defense, and our mindset is to never give up. We have a lot of guys who have been through a lot with each other, been through a lot of battles over the last couple years, so we hold each other accountable, trust each other, and we're going to fight 'til there's zero on the clock.”

The Celtics will have a chance to catch the defending champions Toronto Raptors (46-18) in the eight seeding games before the playoffs begin. Either way, Boston's young and increasingly healthy roster could enable them to find a groove more easily compared to some of the league's older squads, such as Toronto, the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers.

The Celtics practiced on Friday and Saturday after initially quarantining after their arrival in Florida.

“It’s been so long since we got to be in the gym all together. So it’s been fun,” Tatum said. “We’re all enjoying it, getting back into the rhythm. So we’re having a lot of fun.”