Boston Celtics fall to Rockets: 3 takeaways from an overtime thriller

Jayson Tatum continues to excel

Jayson Tatum didn’t get off to a hot start, but the emerging super star who LeBron James called “a problem” continued to soar Saturday night in front of his hometown crowd, which included Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce.

While Marcus Smart was the star of the game for the Celtics, Tatum did his thing by leading the team with 32 points while going just 9-for-27 from the field, including 4-of-12 from behind the stripe.

There will be nights like those, but the fact he still found a way to score over 30 points shows just how special he is.

What was also special about Saturday night’s performance was the fact that he did other things on the court to help his team have a chance of winning.  Not only did he bang the boards in collecting 13 rebounds, he also dished out 5 assists and 2 steals.

Before the game Celtics coach Brad Stevens highlighted why he believes his young star will be really special.

"“Tatum’s greatest strength to me is his emotional ability to be great in any moment and his ability to quickly learn something,” Stevens said, via NBC Sports Boston.  “That’s why I think he’s got a chance to be really special, but he’d be the first to tell you he’s not finished, and he can still get a lot better because he’s going to see all this stuff.”"

In averaging over 30 points a game over the last month, it is scary to think Jayson Tatum can get a lot better.  The reality is, he can and will as he continues to learn the game and what it takes to play the game on an All-Star level.

On Saturday night, he did other things on the court to help the Boston Celtics compete.  He still scored 32 points, but the true sign of super stardom is when a player starts filling up the stat sheet in other areas besides points.