NBA Twitter Hyped for Jayson Tatum's Dominance in Celtics' Season Opener vs. 76ers
October 19, 2022
Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics started the 2022-23 season on fire Tuesday thanks to a 126-117 home win over the Philadelphia 76ers.
On a night where the Celtics honored late franchise legend Bill Russell, Tatum delivered 35 points on 13-of-20 shooting alongside 12 rebounds and four assists. He took over in the third quarter with 17 points on 7-of-9 field goals alone.
Simply put, Tatum looked unstoppable at times against a 76ers squad expected to be one of the league's top Eastern Conference teams this year. Philadelphia had no answer for him defensively, especially in a third quarter where Boston outscored the visitors 35-25.
The season is only one game old, but Tatum even looked like he could be inserting himself into the MVP race as well. His offensive efficiency, rebounding and defensive effort led to a relatively stress-free fourth quarter en route to the win.
Tatum also got plenty of help from his teammates. Jaylen Brown matched Tatum's point total with 35 of his own, and Malcolm Brogdon impressed in his Celtics debut with 16 points. Grant Williams (15 points) and Marcus Smart (14 points, seven assists) also contributed.
But Tatum was the star Tuesday, and Twitter recognized the fact that it appears the Duke star has taken a big leap since last season, when he earned All-NBA First Team honors and led Boston to the Eastern Conference title.
Andy Bailey @AndrewDBaileyJayson Tatum finished 6th in 2022 MVP voting.<br><br>He's averaged 26.2 PTS, 7.8 REB, 5.6 AST, 1.1 STL and 1.1 BLK over the course of his last three playoff runs (46 games).<br><br>I got some pushback for putting him at No. 6 in my 2022-23 top 50. Feel pretty good about it right now.
The Celtics will now head to Miami for an Eastern Conference Finals rematch with the Heat on Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET.
