The Boston Celtics officially agreed to a record-breaking contract extension with Jayson Tatum, as announced by the organization Saturday.
It was an obvious decision on both sides, but with it came an opportunity for Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens to praise his star for everything that went into the decision to agree on an extension.
“Jayson is a special person and player, and it’s been a thrill for all of us to watch his entire journey in Boston,” Stevens said. “He has embraced all that comes with being a great Celtic, and shows consistent and genuine care for every one of his teammates, coaches and staff across the organization. Despite all the team accomplishments and individual awards, Jayson is committed to constantly improving. He works hard and is extremely driven by the challenges of the game — especially the goal of competing with his teammates for championships. We are obviously ecstatic that Jayson chose to extend his contract and add to his amazing career as a Boston Celtic.”
Tatum’s deal reportedly is set to be worth $314 million over the course of five seasons, making it the richest contract in NBA history.
Tatum is coming off his fourth All-NBA selection, in which he averaged 26.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, a career-high 4.9 assists and 1.0 blocks per game. It’s more about what he did during the postseason, however, helping the Celtics capture Banner 18 with a 16-3 playoff record while averaging 25.0 points, 9.7 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.1 steals.
He became the sixth player in NBA history to win a title while leading his team in playoff points, rebounds and assists, joining Larry Bird, Tim Duncan, LeBron James, Nikola Jokic and Hakeem Olajuwon.
It’s expected someone else will be signing his checks soon, but Boston can take comfort in knowing the Jays are sticking around for awhile.
