On the latest episode of All The Smoke with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, Boston Celtics small forward Jayson Tatum spoke about his relationship with Celtics legend Paul Pierce.
Tatum said he talks to Pierce “pretty often.” The All-Star swingman grew up watching “The Truth,” so it has been special for Tatum to cultivate a relationship with Pierce:
“I talk to him pretty often. I watched him growing up as well,” Jayson Tatum said about Paul Pierce.
“Somebody that I kind of took little bits and pieces from his game…He’s ‘The Truth.' Just being able to talk to him and him giving me little insights and words of encouragement go a long way because sometimes older players sometimes talk down on the new generation or stuff like that and it’s a good feeling when somebody like Paul Pierce welcomes you and tells you that you can be the next Celtic great.”
During his prime with the Celtics, Pierce was one of the most gifted scorers in the NBA. From 2000 to 2007, he averaged 24.8 points over 531 games for the Celtics.
Of course, Pierce’s finest moment with the Celtics came during the 2008 Finals. He won Finals MVP after Boston defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in six games. Pierce averaged 21.8 points in that series to help the Celtics capture their 17th championship in franchise history.
Before the 2019-20 season was suspended due to COVID-19, Tatum and the Celtics were in third place in the Eastern Conference standings with a record of 43-21. Tatum was averaging 23.6 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 59 games while shooting 44.8 percent from the field, 39.8 percent from beyond the arc and 80.6 percent from the free-throw line.
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