Big shoulders, literally
The first thing you notice about the postOlympic, post-gold medal Tatum is that he has added a layer of muscle over the top of his shoulders. He put it to use in a powerful way during exhibition season, almost always getting a mismatch thanks to his added strength. And when teams like Toronto and Orlando tried to collapse on him, he picked them apart with sharp passes to his shooters.
Or he spun and dunked, or popped out for a few deep shots himself. His ceiling is still cathedral-sized, though this may be the season when Tatum makes his biggest jump yet in all areas.
“He’s a threat all over the court. He should be able to score and make plays from all over the court,” said Udoka. “Teams can double-team him on the post, we can obviously play him on the perimeter, play him in pick and rolls, play him on the elbows, areas that are hard for him to be double-teamed.
“The other part was the playmaking. He’s welcomed that,” said the Celtics coach. “He understands the attention that he draws so he’s been great in practice and in games really picking the gym apart. We want him to be a playmaker but also look to score. Just talked to him about using his size advantage, his height, He can get shots off on anybody but not always settling. Got a smaller guy there? Punish him. You draw the crowd and then from there, just make the right play.”
That next step includes a colossal presence at the line, where Tatum has increased his number of attempts each season — last season at 5.3 per game. He’ll face an even higher level of expectation this season, but Tatum certainly has the shoulders to carry it.