Shane Larkin: Jayson Tatum can 'easily' be a top-five player

[Evantime34]

Tatum has a chance to be a Celtics great. By the time he reaches his peak, he will be a big factor in every facet of the game. Once he adds muscle he will be able to guard almost anyone. I expect his passing and playmaking to increase leaps and bounds in the next few years.

If I'm Danny Ainge I'm not moving him for anyone. Watching every game, I enjoy rooting for guys who developed on the Celtics more than a player brought in via trade or free agency. Tatum had one of the best rookie seasons in Celtics history, I want to see how far he can go with this coaching staff and Hanlen training him.

[gift]

Another reason why the “I’d trade Tatum for Davis” folk are short-sighted. Tatum  has a chance to be the next  Durant. Is Davis a top 5 player? Sure but he will eventually be a free agent, has a terrible injury history, team has gone nowhere for years... These things can't be ignored. Tatum took horford brown and scrubs to the ecf g7

Btw it looks like we have our first official confirmation of tatums real height- 6’10. Professional Basketball players aren’t going to get something like a teammates height incorrect in interviews.

Watch those clips of him playing one on one with Bamba and Embiid. He looks barely shorter than Bamba (who stood eye to eye with KG in an interview piece) and did not appear significantly shorter than 7'2 Embiid. He's at least 6'9 now and may be 6'10. I think he may have had that growth spurt people were speculating was possible since his growth plates supposedly hadn't closed.

[Big333223]

I've always liked the Durant comparison for Tatum but the side-by-side comparison of Tatum and Kobe was pretty impressive. My dislike for Kobe has always been about his personality, not his talent or his skill. If Jayson Tatum has Kobe Bryant's game and a Celtic brain, I'm in love.

Anyway, I agree that he has top 5 potential.

[DefenseWinsChamps]

Another reason why the “I’d trade Tatum for Davis” folk are short-sighted. Tatum  has a chance to be the next  Durant. Is Davis a top 5 player? Sure but he will eventually be a free agent, has a terrible injury history, team has gone nowhere for years... These things can't be ignored. Tatum took horford brown and scrubs to the ecf g7

Btw it looks like we have our first official confirmation of tatums real height- 6’10. Professional Basketball players aren’t going to get something like a teammates height incorrect in interviews.

Watch those clips of him playing one on one with Bamba and Embiid. He looks barely shorter than Bamba (who stood eye to eye with KG in an interview piece) and did not appear significantly shorter than 7'2 Embiid. He's at least 6'9 now and may be 6'10. I think he may have had that growth spurt people were speculating was possible since his growth plates supposedly hadn't closed.

I just screenshot a pic from the video you mentioned. I couldn't get a good side-by-side of Tatum and Embiid, but luckily after Tatum hit a nasty fall away over Bambi (new nickname, you heard it here first), Tatum gave him a fun-loving bump. Both players are on the ground and relatively straight-legged.

Bambi measured 7'0.75'' at the combine in shoes (that doesn't include his hair).

Tatum looks all of 6'10'' to me, and maybe closer to 6'11''

[ETNCeltics]

I was watching a 6ers game and there was a shot of Simmons and Embiid side by side. The claim has been made that Simmons is now 7' tall, but if he is, Embiid has shot up to about 7'3, because he was significantly bigger than Simmons.

I figure Tatum is about 6'9. I noticed him and Al next to each other in the playoffs, and Horford was still a little taller.

[Erik]

To me, the two biggest indicators of large success in the NBA are scoring ability and contempt of others. Jordan was the perfect package of this.

I first felt what Larkin said about 2 months into the season. Tatum wasn't playing like a rookie. Rookies force the situation, screw up and then play scared. He let the game come to him, took it right to the very best players in the league, and was very successful. I knew that he was a talented player... I just didn't know if he had the "contempt of others" gene. We saw flashes of it, but he is generally a low key guy. The dunk and stare down on LeBron was the final piece -- it cemented it for me. It was like when Neo realized that he was "the one."

[gouki88]

To me, the two biggest indicators of large success in the NBA are scoring ability and contempt of others. Jordan was the perfect package of this.

I first felt what Larkin said about 2 months into the season. Tatum wasn't playing like a rookie. Rookies force the situation, screw up and then play scared. He let the game come to him, took it right to the very best players in the league, and was very successful. I knew that he was a talented player... I just didn't know if he had the "contempt of others" gene. We saw flashes of it, but he is generally a low key guy. The dunk and stare down on LeBron was the final piece -- it cemented it for me. It was like when Neo realized that he was "the one."

I like those as indicators of success. I agree wholeheartedly that JT was getting more contemptuous (or however you wish to describe it) of the opposition as he got more confident, culminating in his ECF play.

[johnnygreen]

To me, the two biggest indicators of large success in the NBA are scoring ability and contempt of others. Jordan was the perfect package of this.

I first felt what Larkin said about 2 months into the season. Tatum wasn't playing like a rookie. Rookies force the situation, screw up and then play scared. He let the game come to him, took it right to the very best players in the league, and was very successful. I knew that he was a talented player... I just didn't know if he had the "contempt of others" gene. We saw flashes of it, but he is generally a low key guy. The dunk and stare down on LeBron was the final piece -- it cemented it for me. It was like when Neo realized that he was "the one."

Anyone that can make a Neo comparison like this, has to get a TP from me.

[Big333223]

To me, the two biggest indicators of large success in the NBA are scoring ability and contempt of others. Jordan was the perfect package of this.

I first felt what Larkin said about 2 months into the season. Tatum wasn't playing like a rookie. Rookies force the situation, screw up and then play scared. He let the game come to him, took it right to the very best players in the league, and was very successful. I knew that he was a talented player... I just didn't know if he had the "contempt of others" gene. We saw flashes of it, but he is generally a low key guy. The dunk and stare down on LeBron was the final piece -- it cemented it for me. It was like when Neo realized that he was "the one."

I'm not sure what you mean by contempt of others. Are you talking about having confidence? Because I  don't see any correlation between contemptuous feelings for other people and success in basketball.

[bellerephon]

Another reason why the “I’d trade Tatum for Davis” folk are short-sighted. Tatum  has a chance to be the next  Durant. Is Davis a top 5 player? Sure but he will eventually be a free agent, has a terrible injury history, team has gone nowhere for years... These things can't be ignored. Tatum took horford brown and scrubs to the ecf g7

Btw it looks like we have our first official confirmation of tatums real height- 6’10. Professional Basketball players aren’t going to get something like a teammates height incorrect in interviews.

Watch those clips of him playing one on one with Bamba and Embiid. He looks barely shorter than Bamba (who stood eye to eye with KG in an interview piece) and did not appear significantly shorter than 7'2 Embiid. He's at least 6'9 now and may be 6'10. I think he may have had that growth spurt people were speculating was possible since his growth plates supposedly hadn't closed.

I just screenshot a pic from the video you mentioned. I couldn't get a good side-by-side of Tatum and Embiid, but luckily after Tatum hit a nasty fall away over Bambi (new nickname, you heard it here first), Tatum gave him a fun-loving bump. Both players are on the ground and relatively straight-legged.

Bambi measured 7'0.75'' at the combine in shoes (that doesn't include his hair).

Tatum looks all of 6'10'' to me, and maybe closer to 6'11''

I generally agree that Tatum is likely bigger than his listed height, but it is always a mistake to try guess a guy's height by looking at pictures of him standing next to someone. There are too many variables that we can't account for. It is simply not a reliable way to accurately gauge someone's height.

[DefenseWinsChamps]

Another reason why the “I’d trade Tatum for Davis” folk are short-sighted. Tatum  has a chance to be the next  Durant. Is Davis a top 5 player? Sure but he will eventually be a free agent, has a terrible injury history, team has gone nowhere for years... These things can't be ignored. Tatum took horford brown and scrubs to the ecf g7

Btw it looks like we have our first official confirmation of tatums real height- 6’10. Professional Basketball players aren’t going to get something like a teammates height incorrect in interviews.

Watch those clips of him playing one on one with Bamba and Embiid. He looks barely shorter than Bamba (who stood eye to eye with KG in an interview piece) and did not appear significantly shorter than 7'2 Embiid. He's at least 6'9 now and may be 6'10. I think he may have had that growth spurt people were speculating was possible since his growth plates supposedly hadn't closed.

I just screenshot a pic from the video you mentioned. I couldn't get a good side-by-side of Tatum and Embiid, but luckily after Tatum hit a nasty fall away over Bambi (new nickname, you heard it here first), Tatum gave him a fun-loving bump. Both players are on the ground and relatively straight-legged.

Bambi measured 7'0.75'' at the combine in shoes (that doesn't include his hair).

Tatum looks all of 6'10'' to me, and maybe closer to 6'11''

I generally agree that Tatum is likely bigger than his listed height, but it is always a mistake to try guess a guy's height by looking at pictures of him standing next to someone. There are too many variables that we can't account for. It is simply not a reliable way to accurately gauge someone's height.

I don't disagree. I'd rather have an official listing. But this is the best I can do.

Besides, there is just something weirdly fun about this kind of substantiated (but not really) fan theory.

[GreenShooter]

He's 19 years old. Most men stop growing at 16 while some stop at 20. It's possible he's still stretching out. He's long and he could still bump up to 6'9 or 6'10, if he hasn't already done so. That's scary for the opposition. We'll see in September.

[byennie]

Assuming Tatum ascends, what is the pecking order (if such a thing exists)? Are Irving and Tatum our franchise guys, if such a thing exists?

Irving + Tatum == the "go to" franchise guys, top-10 players?
Hayward + Horford == the veteran stars, top-30 players?
Brown == The "5th" man, ascending top-30 player
Smart + Rozier + Morris + Theis + Baynes == the role players/ 6th men
Wanamaker + Semi + Williams + Bird + Yabusele == the wild cards

[KungPoweChicken]

I think Tatum is 6’8 without shoes. Possibly 6’8 1/2. This would make him 6’9 with shoes or possibly 6’9 1/2.

[KungPoweChicken]

Assuming Tatum ascends, what is the pecking order (if such a thing exists)? Are Irving and Tatum our franchise guys, if such a thing exists?

Irving + Tatum == the "go to" franchise guys, top-10 players?
Hayward + Horford == the veteran stars, top-30 players?
Brown == The "5th" man, ascending top-30 player
Smart + Rozier + Morris + Theis + Baynes == the role players/ 6th men
Wanamaker + Semi + Williams + Bird + Yabusele == the wild cards

Irving: 1
Tatum: 2
Brown/Hayward: 3A/3B
Horford: 5