Jayson Tatum Discusses Excitement to Start Over After First Championship, Balancing MVP and Title Chase, and More

Bobby Krivitsky | Sep 10, 2024

Jun 17, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) lifts the trophy after winning the 2024 NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images / Peter Casey-Imagn Images

In part one of a two-part interview, Jayson Tatum expressed why the Tatum 3s are his favorite of his signature sneakers, what being on the cover of NBA 2K25 means to him, discussed becoming an author, and more.

In part two, the Celtics star voiced his excitement to start from the ground floor again after breaking through to his first NBA championship in June.

Tatum also reflected on winning that title alongside Jaylen Brown, shared his perspective on balancing an MVP pursuit with the quest for Banner 19, and his outlook on Boston's potential to usher in the league's next dynasty.

(Note: Responses were lightly edited for grammar and clarity.)

Bobby Krivitsky: For all the talk about whether you and Jaylen could win a title together, you had come so close so many times, and then in your first season sharing the floor in your primes, you completed the journey. What did it mean to you to accomplish that with him?

Jayson Tatum: It means a lot. It's been a long journey. Seven years of us being teammates together and with a lot of the other guys, and everybody knows, getting to the conference finals so many times and into the Finals and falling short. We knew that we were gonna get it done. It was just a matter of time. We were on the right track. We had a sustained level of success. We just had to get over the hump.

Peter Casey-Imagn Images

Bobby Krivitsky: Jaylen told me winning a championship has given him even more motivation to follow it up with another one. No team has gone back-to-back since the Warriors in 2017-18. Now that you've gotten a taste of championship success, how would you describe your motivation to do it again?

Jayson Tatum: It was just an incredible feeling. Winning a championship, understanding all the hard work and sacrifice that went into making that goal a reality, and understanding how it made you feel the night that you won a championship, the parade, all of it was worth it.

And the unique part, and the cool part is, right now, it's the start of the season, and we gotta start over. We gotta build it up from the ground and not look forward to June. We gotta start with our first day of practice and training camp and just get one percent better every day.

Bobby Krivitsky: Two years ago, you guys got burned at times for looking ahead; last season, the approach of trying to win each day, like you're talking about, helped you maximize the present, and it paid off in the long run.

Do you view that as an essential part of the formula to repeat, and coming off a championship, with the team trying to balance what needs to get accomplished to prepare for the playoffs with doing its best to have everyone healthy and at the top of their game at the right time, do you think it could be a challenge to maintain that mindset during a long regular season?

Jayson Tatum: I think we did an excellent job last year of not skipping steps and not looking past anything. And it's just, it's reality, it's human nature. We've learned from our mistakes, and we applied that thought process, and we were very intentional about everything we tried to do last season.

Bobby Krivitsky: As you just said, it's important to stay present and not skip steps, but with nearly your entire title team intact and eight rotation players under contract beyond the upcoming season, do you think about and do you draw motivation from knowing there is an opportunity for this to be the NBA's next dynasty?

Jayson Tatum: Honestly, no. I think this offseason, as busy as I've been, I've just tried to enjoy that. We just did something special. I don't want to get lost in 'what's next, what's next? Let's try to win 3-4, however many.' Obviously, you want to win as many as you can, but winning a championship doesn't just happen, and you should be able to enjoy that wholeheartedly.

Pool Photo-Imagn Images

Bobby Krivitsky: There's a narrative from people who wonder, now that you've won a championship, will you be more self-indulgent in pursuit of an MVP? What's your outlook on wanting an accolade like that while putting the team first and keeping winning as the priority?

Jayson Tatum: Yeah, winning takes precedence over everything. Winning a championship is the most important. Playing the right way. But it's been done. It's possible. You can play the right way, you can dominate the game, you can strive for a championship, and be an MVP of the league. So, you don't have to sacrifice one for the other. You can do both.

Bobby Krivitsky: What does growth look like for you next season?

Jayson Tatum: To continue to get better, at the young age of 26, still being motivated and far from complacent. There are a lot of things left I want to accomplish and a lot of things I feel like I can work on. So, not just limiting it to one thing. I'm trying to get better at just -- I want to be a better basketball player each and every season.

Further Reading

Jayson Tatum Discusses Becoming an Author, Tatum 3s, 2K Cover, and More

Byproduct of New CBA Threatens Jordan Walsh's Roster Spot with Celtics

Lonnie Walker IV Delivers Motivated Message about Joining Celtics

Evaluating Oshae Brissett's Best Options in Free Agency

Top 5 Games on Celtics' 2024-25 Schedule

Jayson Tatum Opens Up About 'Challenging and Humbling' Olympic Experience

Here's What to Know about Jaylen Brown's Boston XChange

Jayson Tatum Gets Candid about Relationship with Jaylen Brown

Al Horford, Raising Cane's, and a Region that Loves Him

On Derrick White and the Fuel for Unprecedented Journey to NBA's Best Role Player