Paul Pierce: Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum 'like a mature version of my game'

http://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2017/09/paul_pierce_boston_celtics_jay.html



Paul Pierce: Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum 'like a mature version of my game'



Posted on September 14, 2017 at 9:00 PM




Jayson Tatum on comparison to Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce


By Jay King




During his summer league debut, Boston Celtics rookie Jayson Tatum isolated a bit outside the elbow, created separation from his defender and drilled a stepback, game-winning jump shot.

The Paul Pierce comparisons, as premature as they may be, probably would have rushed in at some point anyway. But that moment sealed the fate. And the comparisons haven't stopped since then.

They've only gotten a bit more dramatic, if Pierce's comments Thursday to CSN's A. Sherrod Blakely stand as any indication.

A. Sherrod Blakely @ASherrodblakely
"When I'm watching him, he looks like a mature version of my game, like my 6th, 7th, 8th year."- @paulpierce34 on @jaytatum0. More to come.
12:52 PM - Sep 14, 2017 · Burlington, MA
8 8 Replies   110 110 Retweets   285 285 likes

"He looks like an older version of me, when I started doing the step-back and stuff," Pierce told A. Blakely. "When I'm watching him, he looks like a mature version of my game, like sixth, seventh, eighth year. He sees the defense. He knows what's going to happen before it happens. He understands his position, footwork, his step-back (jumper) is there. His offensive repertoire seems complete. The sky is the limit for that kid."


Look, Tatum had a great summer league. He has an elite skill set, polished footwork, and, yes, he plays at his own pace, which reminded a lot of people of Pierce (including Pierce's former teammate Walter McCarty). I think Tatum should have a nice career, at least, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him emerge over time as a franchise player. I even half-jokingly called him "Young Honesty" on a podcast this summer, a nod to The Truth.

But nobody enters the NBA as a mature version of Paul Pierce. By the time Pierce's eighth season concluded, he had already played in five All-Star Games, averaged a 26-7-6 stat line in three separate seasons, and proven himself as one of the NBA's most complete players. As a rookie, it's probably more likely that Tatum will settle into a bench scoring role, learn he needs to hit the weights, and struggle a bit to balance ball movement and the search for his own offense. Even for the most talented prospects, finding ways to excel in the NBA takes time.


Knowing that, Pierce was more careful to qualify his Tatum praise during an appearance on ESPN over the summer.

"I see a lot of offensive potential," Pierce said at the time. "You see a lot of these guys coming in and they get compared to past former greats -- to Kobe Bryant, to past Shaq or whoever. But the difference that separates guys of the past is the mentality they brought to the game. You can say, 'Oh, he plays like Kobe.' 'Oh, he plays like Paul, he has the footwork and the jumper.' But people don't understand it was the mentality we carried, the toughness, the grit that we brought, that killer instinct. Those are the traits that you can't just install into a player. But they can have all the tools. He has the tools, though. If he can develop that grit, that toughness, the sky's the limit."


Tatum does have some Pierce-ish traits to his game. He gets to his spots, has mature counters to his moves, and operates with an eternal calmness. But he's not Pierce yet, may never reach that level, and could still be a great ballplayer if he doesn't.

Even so, it's still cool to see Pierce and Tatum hanging out:

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bob


.

I'm a big Paul Pierce fan.

If Jayson Tatum is Paul Pierce 2.0 then Danny Ainge is a genius because I really wanted Ainge to draft Markelle Fultz.

This is why I wanted to see Boston select Tatum so badly, although until the trade, I thought they would go with Fultz.

Every time I watched Duke last season, Tatum simply reminded me of Pierce.  That would be Paul Pierce in his second or so year with Boston.  Pierce was not as polished coming out of Kansas.

Pierce had the opportunity to start right away, which Tatum probably won't, so Tatum will take time to get there.  I do think, however, that Tatum has the kind of potential that he'll quickly pressure those ahead of him for minutes.

What I think will most pleasantly surprise Celtics fans is that he'll be an asset on the defensive end.  Combine that with what I expect to be another much needed scorer, and it might not be all that long until the day we see an Irving/Hayward backcourt.

NYCelt wrote:This is why I wanted to see Boston select Tatum so badly, although until the trade, I thought they would go with Fultz.

Every time I watched Duke last season, Tatum simply reminded me of Pierce.  That would be Paul Pierce in his second or so year with Boston.  Pierce was not as polished coming out of Kansas.

Pierce had the opportunity to start right away, which Tatum probably won't, so Tatum will take time to get there.  I do think, however, that Tatum has the kind of potential that he'll quickly pressure those ahead of him for minutes.

What I think will most pleasantly surprise Celtics fans is that he'll be an asset on the defensive end.  Combine that with what I expect to be another much needed scorer, and it might not be all that long until the day we see an Irving/Hayward backcourt.

I think Brad will start the season with Hayward and Jaylen at the 2 and 3 spot.
They're interchangeable so I don't think it really matters who's the 2 or the 3.

What I'm excited about is Tatum starting at the 4 spot in the near future.

Fierce,

I think it's possible Browns starts at the 2, although I don't think he's a starter on this team long term.  Nothing wrong with him, he's going to be very good, just not a starter for Boston.  Since Brown has yet to play the 2, it could still be Smart, however.  My expectation is they stick with Hayward at SF for now.  Despite all the position-less talk, in our most recent schemes it still comes down to traditional positions.  The next time Boston fields a truly position-less lineup will be the first.  Stevens might just try it, and it wouldn't shock me.

I don't think Tatum is an NBA 4, but rather a 3.  I think we'll eventually find another big(ger) forward who can board and defend.  If things go the way I'm guessing (and we're all just guessing), the late season 2018 Celtics or early 2018-2019 club will feature a starting lineup of Horford - C, Hayward - 2G, Irving - PG, Tatum - SF and a PF to be determined.  Of course, that's a big guess when I'm projecting an as yet untested rookie as a future starter.  Call it high expectations based on many years of watching lesser NCAA talents blossom into NBA stars.

My best shot at the evolving lineup, anyway.

Regards

Positionless basketball is the reality now. I think we could easily see 4 SFs on the court concurrently. I wouldn't get too hung up in the "spots" a player is playing as.

With that said, Tatum does remind me of Pierce, also. He's going to get a lot of minutes even coming off the bench. With Crowder, Bradley, and Thomas gone, the opportunity to make a mark is there.


KJ


KJ

KJ,

I agree.  Positionless basketball is becoming a reality.  But slowly.

I was just pointing out that The Celtics have yet to actually play it.

In fact, it's a largely overused term in general.  Most teams have taken to more of a change in the type of position.  You also can see teams at both the NCAA and NBA levels employ a system with a single positionless player.  To play true positionless basketball, at least on the offensive end, you almost have to employ a 2-in/3-out or even a 5-out and run from there. It's actually mostly seen in the amateur ranks right now (think AAU; we'll sometimes run off the 2/3 on my son's team this coming season).  Even the 2/3 isn't really positionless, but really two-position.

I also think you're correct in that the personnel change could lead Boston to do something unique this season.

Regards

NYCelt wrote:Fierce,

I think it's possible Browns starts at the 2, although I don't think he's a starter on this team long term.  Nothing wrong with him, he's going to be very good, just not a starter for Boston.  Since Brown has yet to play the 2, it could still be Smart, however.  My expectation is they stick with Hayward at SF for now.  Despite all the position-less talk, in our most recent schemes it still comes down to traditional positions.  The next time Boston fields a truly position-less lineup will be the first.  Stevens might just try it, and it wouldn't shock me.

I don't think Tatum is an NBA 4, but rather a 3.  I think we'll eventually find another big(ger) forward who can board and defend.  If things go the way I'm guessing (and we're all just guessing), the late season 2018 Celtics or early 2018-2019 club will feature a starting lineup of Horford - C, Hayward - 2G, Irving - PG, Tatum - SF and a PF to be determined.  Of course, that's a big guess when I'm projecting an as yet untested rookie as a future starter.  Call it high expectations based on many years of watching lesser NCAA talents blossom into NBA stars.

My best shot at the evolving lineup, anyway.

Regards

NYCelt - I was interested to hear that you don't think Brown will be a starter for the Celtics. To me, a number 3 pick should be a starter in the NBA. I am hoping that Brown will be more than a solid starter. However, I admit that I maybe haven't watched him closely enough. Do you think Danny missed on this pick, or that it was just a weak draft, or am I misunderstanding?

As much as Tatum may already show some offensive characteristics that resemble Paul Pierce he is still an NBA rookie who will have to "earn" his minutes when the season begins.

With turning over 11/15ths of our roster, I certainly hope that Tatum can help us more than just being "on the team" or a "piece off the bench". A third pick should be able to play well much sooner than a guy picked in the middle of the first round, and we are likely to need him to do so.

He, so far, has impressed in every way. He seems to be mature and knowledgeable beyond his years as well.

Good luck to this young man and the Cs team this season. Let's get started!

PP had a great rookie year and played 34 MPG.  That probably will not happen with Tatum.  Tatum is a highly skilled 19 year old player.  He needs to work on his long ball and his body to add more strength and endurance.  Once he masters the NBA 3 and gets physically stronger he will be a terrific player.  Even before he is able to do those things he is going to contribute this year.

He game is very similar to PP but I think he is more athletic.  

As far as starters are concerned, either Smart or Brown will be at the SG spot.  Smart is the next man up however he will be playing starter minutes no matter what.  Brown would benefit from starting along side our big three.  But he could also be our main guy off the bench.  Since we have revamped a significant portion of our roster it is difficult to know who play well with others.

Positionless basketball really begins at the center spot where utilization of a big low post offensive presence has become almost extinct.  Now you have undersized mobile centers that can stretch the defense and by doing so, open up the middle for drives to the hoop.

This change has also impacted the PF position where again we are seeing mobile players that can handle the ball and also shoot from distance.  The traditional back to the basket post up game on offense has changed dramatically at both the center and PF positions.

The so-called new positions (ball handlers, wings and bigs) are bound to overlap when you have so many wings on your team with diverse skill sets.  The ideal wing becomes all three of those new positions.  At the very least, players that can swing up or down are very valuable.

For example Jaylen Brown is a wing that can play 2 or 3.  Gordon Hayward is a wing that is also a ball handler and so is Tatum.  Marcus Smart is a ball handle that can also play on the wing.  

At the very least we will see 3 SF on the court at the same time as part of Steven's rotation.  We are going to see Hayward, Brown and Tatum on the floor together along with KI and AH.  who plays PF in this grouping?  The wings are interchangeable.  I would not be shocked if Hayward got some run at 4.  He is 6' 8" and 226# and you can see his strength.  

The Celtics drafted another wing in Semi Ojeleye.  He is listed (ESPN) on the roster as a PF.  At some point during the season he will get on the floor.  Danny said that he expects Semi to be able to play PF in their schemes.

I think that the strategy for Boston will be for them to make other teams match up with them.  

dboss

Shamrock1000 wrote:

NYCelt wrote:Fierce,

I think it's possible Browns starts at the 2, although I don't think he's a starter on this team long term.  Nothing wrong with him, he's going to be very good, just not a starter for Boston.  Since Brown has yet to play the 2, it could still be Smart, however.  My expectation is they stick with Hayward at SF for now.  Despite all the position-less talk, in our most recent schemes it still comes down to traditional positions.  The next time Boston fields a truly position-less lineup will be the first.  Stevens might just try it, and it wouldn't shock me.

I don't think Tatum is an NBA 4, but rather a 3.  I think we'll eventually find another big(ger) forward who can board and defend.  If things go the way I'm guessing (and we're all just guessing), the late season 2018 Celtics or early 2018-2019 club will feature a starting lineup of Horford - C, Hayward - 2G, Irving - PG, Tatum - SF and a PF to be determined.  Of course, that's a big guess when I'm projecting an as yet untested rookie as a future starter.  Call it high expectations based on many years of watching lesser NCAA talents blossom into NBA stars.

My best shot at the evolving lineup, anyway.

Regards

NYCelt - I was interested to hear that you don't think Brown will be a starter for the Celtics. To me, a number 3 pick should be a starter in the NBA. I am hoping that Brown will be more than a solid starter. However, I admit that I maybe haven't watched him closely enough. Do you think Danny missed on this pick, or that it was just a weak draft, or am I misunderstanding?

Shamrock,

I don't mean to say there is anything wrong with Brown; sorry if I made it sound that way.  I think Danny made a fine pick with him.  I simply think he's going to have stronger players ahead of him.  Call it SF, G or wing, he's going to have to contend with Hayward and Smart to begin with.  Based on watching both Brown and Tatum at the NCAA level, I think Tatum comes into the pros a more developed player, with a better all-around game and more refined court instincts.  I also think Tatum has the skills and capacity to continue to develop at a faster rate than Brown.  I don't think Brown will be able to do better than draw even with Tatum on either end of the floor in camp.  I do think Tatum will quickly surpass Brown. Likewise with Smart.

Make no mistake about it, I think Brown is going to become an excellent NBA player.  Tatum hasn't played a single minute of NBA ball, either.  But if I'm correct (and regardless of what my wife will tell you I often at least think I am ), a great many people have no idea of what we've got with Tatum.  I believe the kid's going to be something to watch, and he'll prove he needs to get the opportunity sooner, rather than later.

Regards

Nycelt can't win without superstars, hope your right and Tatum can evolve fast into a multi all-star type player and do it sooner than later. He definitely played in better competition in college and I would agree at the college level he had more skills and was a better all around player. Brown was raw coming in, but the talent/athleticism is definitely there, he seems to have the work ethic to build on which will hopefully separate him from the bunch of athletic players that never developed.

Cow,

It could be that with Tatum and Brown we will have a pair of young stars.

Personally, I'm more excited about Tatum and Brown, and what they can do for the team over the long run, than about Hayward and Irving.  And that's not meant as a slight to Hayward and Irving in any way.  If we're building a long term annual contender, the two recent #3 picks could be among the most vital pieces.

Regards

NYCelt agreed will be great watching these 2 wings develop, the greatest wing tandem was obviously Jordan and Pippen, trying to think of the second best and drawing blanks, as most great teams were carried by a great big and wing or point guard. Maybe Pierce and Ray Allen could have been up there if they had gotten together earlier in their careers. Gonna be really great watching these 2 add to their games and how much they can help each other and carry the team and make others better. At some point or often if it jells, we will be seeing the 3 all stars with the 2 youngsters, Irving, Jaylen, Hayward, Tatum, Al. It's gonna be great that Brown and Tatum will develop, contribute and improve and not have to carry a team, but start out as lethal 3rd or 4th options on the offense. 

I'm also intrigued with what Yabu, Nader, Theis and Semi can all do, and how much potential they all have. This could be one of our deepest teams ever.

Sam Jones and whomever played wing alongside him, be it Hondo or Heinsohn or Nelson.

Worse good one, Elgin and Jerry too, but West was more a guard as in a combo 1 and 2.

Elite wing combos are bigger players that can dominate at the 2 and 3, Jordan and Pippen certainly could do that and Hondo set the bar, Danny seems to be rebuilding his team to have more of these type of players than ever, only now they can even play the 4.

cowens/oldschool wrote:Worse good one, Elgin and Jerry too, but West was more a guard as in a combo 1 and 2.

Elite wing combos are bigger players that can dominate at the 2 and 3, Jordan and Pippen certainly could do that and Hondo set the bar, Danny seems to be rebuilding his team to have more of these type of players than ever, only now they can even play the 4.

Cow,

It'd be nice to have one stork. The age of the mastodons may be fading into the rear view mirror but storks who can defend the baseline but can also come out and put pressure on perimeter players will always be in vogue. Gobert has that mobility, Whiteside doesn't (and doesn't like coming out of the paint. Rudy will if needed).


bob


.

Bob wish there was a young Dave Cowens on the horizon, he did all those things and had a post up game and outside shot, vicious board eater too.

cowens/oldschool wrote:Bob wish there was a young Dave Cowens on the horizon, he did all those things and had a post up game and outside shot, vicious board eater too.

Cow,

Yeah, who wouldn't like a future HOFer...?


bob


.

http://www.celticsblog.com/2017/9/18/16301034/the-truth-about-jayson-tatum-boston-celtics-nba-2017-rookie-player-preview

willjr wrote:http://www.celticsblog.com/2017/9/18/16301034/the-truth-about-jayson-tatum-boston-celtics-nba-2017-rookie-player-preview

Wow, another weak article from CelticsBlog.  Right on the heels of that strange one speculating about Morris becoming a point forward.  What are they doing over there?

This guy seems to have had no idea of who Tatum is and what he did last year.  He doesn't even seem to fully realize Tatum was pretty much a consensus top 3 pick in a draft thought to have 4 can't miss prospects.  It's only after a reader poll that he appears to get on the reality train.  He doesn't seem to know the half of what Tatum's game has been all about.

If those guys need some new quality writers, maybe we can send them some material from one of our board members.

I also see some similarities of Sean Elliott in Jayson Tatum's game.

I see some Durant