Seven years into his NBA career and Jayson Tatum has risen to be one of the best players in the league these days. But before that happened, the Boston Celtics star’s mother did her part in helping him becoming a professional baller.
Tatum first entered the league as the Celtics’ third overall pick in the 2017 Draft. While he was considered to be a supporting piece to a Boston team that centered around All-Star guard Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward at that time, the young rookie rose to prominence by eventually becoming the team’s best player in such a short amount of time.
By the 2019-20 season, the first one without Kyrie, Tatum averaged 23.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.4 steals per game. And even though the Celtics were eliminated by Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat inside the Bubble, the All-Star forward proved to be talented enough to shoulder Boston’s offensive needs.
This season marked the best run Boston had experienced in recent memory. The Celtics managed to finish the regular season with the league’s best record of 64 wins and 18 losses, which earned them the number one seed in the playoffs. And with the team showing how dominant they are on both ends of the court, there’s a pretty good chance Tatum and company can find their way back to the NBA Finals after being defeated by the Golden State Warriors in 2022.
Boston Celtics Star Jayson Tatum’s Mother Shares Story On How She Prepared His Son for NBA
While Boston’s series against Donovan Mitchell and the Cleveland Cavaliers is ongoing, Tatum appeared in an interview by Taylor Rooks for Bleacher Report. In a video posted on X, the Celtics star recalled her mother’s part in how he became an NBA player:
Jayson Tatum never understood why his mother Brandy would ask him basketball questions as a young kid, but she was preparing him for the NBA 🙏
Shoutout to the moms who always believe! Happy Mother’s Day ❤️
(via @TaylorRooks X) pic.twitter.com/QOvI9T79rU
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 13, 2024
Over the course eight games in this year’s playoffs, Tatum averaged 23.1 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 5.5 assists. Turns out, he’s living up to his full potential, all with the help of his mother, Brandy Cole-Barnes.
All that remains now for Tatum to fully become one of the greats is to win a ring soon. If he does, Cole-Barnes’ role in his journey will forever be cemented in NBA history.
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