Boston Celtics‘ Jayson Tatum is one of the most accomplished players in the NBA. At only 27 years old, he’s earned multiple All-Star appearances, All-NBA nods and a championship. With all that he’s done early in his career, many would believe he’s one of the most talked about players around the association. However, that is not the case for the young star.
Tatum is often overlooked by the media, his peers and most fans. This season, the Celtics star is averaging 26.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists on 45.2% shooting from the field. With the way he’s played, the 6-foot-9 forward has led Boston to a 43-18 record, which puts the team second in the Eastern Conference. He’s also third in the NBA MVP Ladder as of Feb. 28.
No matter what he does, however, he doesn’t get much appreciation. According to a former Celtics player, Kendrick Perkins, Tatum should get more recognition for the work he has done for the organization. Additionally, he lauded the six-time All-Star as the superstar whom many franchises should long for.
“Jayson Tatum is the most underrated star in the NBA and he is the most disrespected star in the NBA. He’s a superstar. This man is everything that you want in a franchise player,” Perkins said on Tuesday’s episode of First Take.
“Jayson Tatum is the most underrated star in the NBA and he is the most disrespected star in the NBA. He's a superstar. This man is everything that you want in a franchise player.”
— Kendrick Perkins
(via @FirstTake, h/t @RTNBA) pic.twitter.com/ZwTn6IZvbE
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) March 4, 2025
A former Boston Celtics star says playing for the franchise is the reason Tatum is underappreciated
If there is one player who can understand what it feels like to be underappreciated in Boston, it’s Paul Pierce. According to Piece, he believes that playing for the city makes it difficult for Tatum to gain more recognition.
The former Boston Celtics star revealed his thoughts on the young forward on the latest episode of “Ticket & The Truth.”
“Because he plays for Boston,” Pierce said (39:39). “It’s just what it is. Every player through Boston, even Larry Bird, was underappreciated. You know what I’m saying? ‘Cause at one point, he was the best player in the league, but it was always Magic (Johnson). …
“Boston is the most hated franchise, hated team in all of sports. In all of basketball for sure.”
“If you took the name and the face away from all my accomplishments and you’re just like, ‘This is what this Player A accomplished at 26,’ people would talk about (me) a lot differently.”
Tatum has accomplished a lot for a young star in the league. However, the narrative around him doesn’t help his case to get more recognition from the media and fans. Fortunately for the Boston Celtics and their franchise star, it hasn’t affected them and their performance as they seek to win their second title in a row this season.
For other sports-related content:
Follow me on X at @BarbecueBro, and follow us at @HardwoodHeroics and @GridironHeroics. You can also reach out to Reign Amurao via email at [email protected]. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest sports news, click here!
Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
