Jayson Tatum Preparing for Point-Guard Role This Season

With Marcus Smart in Memphis, Jayson Tatum, who led the Celtics in assists last postseason, is preparing to spend more time initiating their offense.

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Jayson Tatum is one of the NBA's most adaptable superstars. No matter what his team needs, he can fill that role. And it's hard to come up with a situation where he's a bad fit.

As the two-time All-NBA First Team selection prepares for a season where Candace Parker told Inside The Celtics she believes Tatum will capture the MVP award, ESPN's Ramona Shelburne shared that while the four-time All-Star was training in Los Angeles, he spent a lot of time working on his ability to play the point.

I think the Celtics play at a slower pace when Tatum brings the ball up, but he has proven he can initiate the offense effectively.

It speaks to Tatum's ability to adapt to what his team needs. It's hard to come up with a situation where he's a bad fit.pic.twitter.com/SICug6BnL5

— Bobby Krivitsky (@BobbyKrivitsky) September 21, 2023

As Shelburne notes, Tatum spent considerable time initiating Boston's offense in the playoffs. While the Celtics typically operated at a slower pace when he brought the ball up, he proved to be effective in that role. 

Along with being Boston's leading scorer in the postseason, generating 27.2 points per game, the former Duke Blue Devil dished out the most assists on the team, averaging 5.3 per contest.

And with Marcus Smart now a member of the Grizzlies, it makes sense Tatum would initiate the offense even more moving forward.

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There's also the reality that while Derrick White's plenty capable of playing point guard in the Celtics' offense, where his task will often be to get the ball across half-court, then quickly get into someone else's hands -- typically Tatum's -- he's spent more time in his career playing off the ball.

Furthermore, Malcolm Brogdon proved a more impactful scorer than facilitator last season, and Payton Pritchard has so far provided more of the former than the latter in his first three years in the NBA.

Perhaps having Tatum initiate the offense more helps maximize having him and Jaylen Brown on the floor, a topic also explored with Parker. More off-ball activity, for example, freeing up the latter to make more of an impact as a cutter, would also go a long way toward accomplishing that goal.

Boston being able to lean on Tatum's ability to facilitate its offense allows the Celtics to take comfort in their options to handle the ball in the post-Marcus Smart era.

Further Reading

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Candace Parker on Celtics Trading Marcus Smart, Maximizing Tatum-Brown Tandem, Pat Summitt, and the Sports Matter Initiative

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