Jayson Tatum Hyped by NBA Twitter For Dropping 41 in Celtics' Win vs. Giannis, Bucks

This year's marquee Christmas Day matchup pitted two NBA MVP candidates against each other as Jayson Tatum's Boston Celtics welcomed Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks to town.

In the end, Tatum asserted himself as the favorite to take home some hardware at season's end with a 41-point outburst to lead the Celtics to a 139-118 win in front of an excited home crowd at TD Garden. He out-dueled Antetokounmpo, who finished with 27 points but struggled to find a rhythm, shooting 9-of-22 from the field.

Tatum has now scored over 30 points in five straight games and topped the 40-point mark three times in that span. He scored 20 points in the third quarter alone on Sunday, and he added seven rebounds, five assists and three steals to stuff the stat sheet. The 24-year-old is now the first player to score over 40 points in a Christmas Day game since 2018.

NBA Twitter erupted with praise for Tatum's dominance on Sunday, with many touting him as the leading MVP candidate:

Tatum made a statement with his performance, establishing the Celtics as the clear top team in the Eastern Conference. Boston owns the best record in the NBA at 24-10, and the team looks ready to make another trip to the NBA Finals.

Tatum and the Celtics will go for their third straight win when they host the Houston Rockets (9-23) on Tuesday.