Celtics’ Jayson Tatum Passes Kobe Bryant in Rare Postseason History
Celtics’ Jayson Tatum Passes Kobe Bryant in Rare Postseason History
The Boston Celtics are very much alive in their second-round series against the New York Knicks. Boston came out on top in Saturday’s Game 3 in front of a New York faithful.
It was a contest that Boston handled very easily. They dominated the entire 48-minute game and shot lights out from behind the arc, something they had yet to do before Saturday’s game. Boston looked more like themselves in Game 3, and so did their star forward, Jayson Tatum.
Tatum delivered a strong performance, and in doing so, he moved past Hall of Famer and NBA icon Kobe Bryant for the second-most career playoff points by the age of 27.
Lakers superstar LeBron James is the only player ahead of him on that list.
Tatum’s 22-point performance on Saturday helped him pass Bryant. As things stand, Tatum sits with 2,894 playoff points. As for Bryant, he had 2,889 at the age of 27 or younger.
Regarding the all-time list, Bryant stands at No. 4 overall with 5,640. He only stands behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan and James. As for Tatum, he is No. 36 overall and is slated to pass Celtics legend Sam Jones, who is No. 35 on the list.
Tatum played in his 120th playoff game on Saturday and did his part to lead his team to victory. Outside of the 22 points, he recorded nine rebounds, seven assists and two steals in 40 minutes of action.
The Celtics cruised past the Knicks in Game 3, delivering a dominant performance. Afterward, Tatum addressed the media, offering a candid take on the highs and lows of receiving both praise and criticism.
“You just understand what comes with being that guy,” Tatum said. “I get a lot of praise, I get a lot of credit, I get a lot of accolades, but I’m not perfect. And there’s times where I’ve needed to play better, I’ve needed to do more, and that’s what comes with being that guy.
“So I always say, you’ve gotta be the same person when things are going great and when things aren’t going great,” Tatum said. “You can’t switch up. That’s the character of a good man.”
Tatum idolized Bryant, and at this rate, he could pass his idol on the all-time list.