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Former Boston Celtics veteran Kendrick Perkins gave high praises to Jayson Tatum even after his squad succumbed to the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night. The 22-year-old continues to show his offensive prowess after tallying 30 points and nine rebounds against LeBron James and the defending champions.
Perkins went the extra mile and bared that Tatum is right behind Kevin Durant as one of the best scorers in the league today.
“I keep saying is that Jayson Tatum is probably the best scorer in the game today, right under Kevin Durant. Offensively, he has zero flaws. There’s nothing that he can’t do and no one could stop him,” he said via NBC Sports Boston.
The 2008 NBA Champion also compared the Celtics star to another stellar offensive player in Brooklyn Nets star James Harden. Perkins lauded Harden for his ability to fish for fouls but eventually ripped him for not having offensive moves that are as polished as Tatum's.
“He is, because James Harden, he does a great job of as far as getting to the free-throw line. But when you talk about just a guy that could go get a bucket, we don’t see James Harden pulling up from mid-range shots. We don’t see James Harden going to the low block and having fadeaways and turn arounds over both shoulders. (…) Jayson Tatum could pull up for three just like James Harden can,” Perkins concluded.
Tatum has been on a tear in his fourth season in the league after averaging norms of 26.8 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 3.7 assists through 13 games for the Celtics. The team also went on a three-game losing skid last week after he contracted a positive COVID-19 case which forced him to miss a handful of games.
His offensive production on Saturday night was a huge factor as to why his team managed to keep within striking distance against the Lakers, especially in crunch time despite Kemba Walker's struggles from the field. However, the Celtics eventually ran out of gas in the fourth quarter to narrowly succumb to a 96-95 defeat en route to a 10-8 record.
The Boston-based squad is currently on a two-game losing skid but having an elite scorer like Jayson Tatum on their corner will definitely help them get back on the right track in their coming games.
