Tatum rising to new heights
All-NBA honor puts him in C’s record books
Jayson Tatum’s selection to the All-NBA third team scratched the very boundaries of Celtics history.
He joined Easy Ed Macauley —a fellow son of St. Louis — as the only two players in franchise history to earn all-league honors before the age of 23. He also became the second-youngest Celtic to make an All-Star team. Antoine Walker was the youngest at 21 years and nine months.
He’s now one of the most electrifying stars of the NBA playoffs.
“He’s had quite a season. I’ve been lucky enough to be around now I think three All-NBA guys in my time here,” said Brad Stevens, referring to a group that also includes Isaiah Thomas and Kyrie Irving.
“The seasons that those guys put together are remarkable and I thought Jayson’s ascension as the season went on, his improvement, made him well-deserving. And I think that he’s just going to keep getting better and better.”
Hayward out for Game 2
Gordon Hayward’s recovery from a sprained right ankle has further to go. The Celtics forward was finally declared out Thursday afternoon, after being upgraded to doubtful a day earlier following a workout with Celtics coaches.
Hayward’s return clearly isn’t on Stevens’ mind at the moment.
“He’s out. He seems to be doing alright,” said the Celtics coach. “And we’ll have another update, I’m sure, tomorrow.”
C’s contend with Heat’s young guns
The challenge of playing Miami, as the Celtics have discovered in their last two meetings, both inside the bubble, is that when a great shooter like Duncan Robinson leaves, he’s replaced by another great shooter named Tyler Herro.
The Celtics, via Marcus Smart, had success with Robinson, and couldn’t find Herro.
“They’ve got good players up and down their roster, so when one gets in foul trouble they can bring other guys that can be very impactful,” said Stevens. “Obviously, Herro is playing at an elite level right now. But Robinson is a guy that we couldn’t respect more with his ability to get shots off, tough shots, and make shots. I don’t know that there’s any advantage gained, per se. I think that, ultimately, both of those guys are really good players.”
Bam the man
Bam Adebayo, as he reminded the Celtics in Game 1, is as dangerous as big men come.
“As a competitor, his competitive maturity belies his age,” said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. “That’s what we’ve always loved about Bam. It’s about winning. That’s all he thinks about, is how to impact winning.
“All the ways that a staff and an organization would see it. It’s not about the final column on the box score: scoring. It’s whatever’s needed. He had a couple big-time plays, not just that one, but defensively going down the stretch. Really switching out but also protecting the rim. All of these things contribute to winning. He has that maturity to understand it is only one game. Seven-game series are hard, and we have great respect for who we are playing against.”