Kevin Durant played Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum this summer, says he has MVP talent: 'He showed me some stuff'

https://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2018/12/kevin_durant_boston_celtics_ja.html



Kevin Durant played Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum this summer, says he has MVP talent: 'He showed me some stuff'



Updated Dec 13, 10:39 AM; Posted Dec 13, 10:39 AM




Golden State Warriors' Kevin Durant, right, drives the ball against Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum (0) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Jan. 27, 2018, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) (Ben Margot)




By Tom Westerholm




Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum started the 2018-19 season a little slow, but he has rounded into form over the last few weeks -- pulling his averages up to 16.6 points per game (second on the Celtics) to go with 40.5 percent shooting from three and 6.6 rebounds.

Tatum struggled at first to adjust to all the new stars, but like several others on the roster, he seems considerably more comfortable with the new roles in the starting lineup and off the bench.

In a podcast with the Ringer's Bill Simmons (a noted Celtics fan) on Wednesday, Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant was asked what he thought about Tatum's development this year. Durant said he scrimmaged against Tatum over the summer, and he came away impressed.

"He showed me some stuff," Durant told Simmons.

"Really?" Simmons responded enthusiastically. "Tell me more."

"Nah, he's nice. He's nice," Durant answered.

Queried by Simmons whether Tatum has future MVP potential, Durant hesitated, then said "He's got that talent, yeah."

That's a fair qualifier by Durant -- Tatum isn't an MVP candidate yet, but on a loaded Celtics squad, he has been one of the team's best players (behind Kyrie Irving, and somewhere alongside Marcus Smart and Marcus Morris). There's certainly work to be done, but if Tatum keeps consistently improving, he has the potential to be special.


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