Boston Celtics 2020 retrospective: The year of Jayson Tatum

A look back at a 2020 NBA season Boston Celtics fans watched Jayson Tatum grow into a star.

As disappointing as 2019 was for the Boston Celtics, it was equally as promising to start 2020 as Jayson Tatum put the NBA on notice by shaping his status as one of the leagues future top stars.

After watching Kyrie Irving and Al Horford walk out the door prior to the 2019-20 NBA season, Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge made a huge wager by betting on both Tatum and Jaylen Brown to emerge combined with the veteran leadership of prize free agent Kemba Walker.

That bet panned out as Tatum played his way to his first All-Star appearance and Brown also made strides showing he is worthy of All-Star status as well.

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But what really got Boston Celtics fans excited to start 2020 was a string of 30-point performances against some of the top teams in the league that had the best basketball player in the world, LeBron James, labeling Jayson Tatum as a “problem.”

Perhaps it was the tragic death of another NBA legend, Kobe Bryant, that really expired Tatum.  The Black Mamba was not only Tatum’s mentor, but a player he looked up to and took advice from in shaping his game as not only a top-level talent, but a leader on a young team that was trending in the right direction before COVID-19 shut down the season.

As disappointing as the sudden interruption was, it was even more frustrating for Celtics fans who was seeing a superstar emerge in Tatum.  The layoff last a couple months, but when the NBA returned in the bubble, the emergence of Tatum begins to emerge again, especially in the playoffs.

Jayson Tatum leads the Boston Celtics deep into the playoffs

Although the team came up short in the Eastern Conference Finals, Jayson Tatum averaged over 25 points per game, while showing off other aspects of his growth in his playmaking ability and defense.

If there was any doubt about a max deal extension, the Duke product secured it with his performance in the team’s playoff run.  As a player that has proved over and over that he is not afraid of the big stage, his five-year $195 million contract extension gave Celtics fans an early Christmas gift and solidified a bright future in Boston.

As greatly as many people want to forget 2020, it was not all that bad for a player like Jayson Tatum.

An All-Star appearance and a max deal extension are not too shabby for a player who will only get bigger, stronger and more clutch as time goes on.

The biggest challenge that lays ahead for Jayson Tatum is his ability to carry the Boston Celtics on his back down the stretch of games and when the team really needs it.  He also needs to make players around him better by continuing to show growth in his playmaking ability.

With teammates like Jaylen Brown, Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart forming a nice core, the budding superstar could find himself in the running for league MVP by the end of 2021.