Jayson Tatum: I Want to Join Bill Russell, Larry Bird on Celtics' Mount Rushmore
Jayson Tatum is hoping he'll be considered among the all-time great Boston Celtics before his career is over.
"I would love to be on the Mount Rushmore of Celtics," he told Jeff Goodman of The Messenger. "[Larry] Bird, [Bill] Russell, Paul Pierce and those guys. They paved the way. The one thing all those guys have is chips. I have to get to the top of the mountain to even be considered as one of those guys. I want to be an all-time great, I want to be known as a winner, and I believe I will be."
Cracking the Mount Rushmore of Celtics isn't easy. Alongside the players Tatum named there are Hall of Famers like John Havlicek, Bob Cousy, Kevin McHale, Dave Cowens, Robert Parish, Sam Jones and of course Kevin Garnett, among others.
It's quite a legacy of talent, though the 25-year-old Tatum is already a four-time All-Star and two-time first-team All-NBA selection. He's on his way to becoming an all-time Celtics great.
Last season he had an incredible season, setting career highs in points (30.1 PPG), rebounds (8.8 RPG) and assists (4.6 APG) while leading the Celtics to the Eastern Conference Finals for the fourth time in his career. He also led the Celtics to the NBA Finals in the 2021-22 season.
At this point, all Tatum hasn't done in his career is win the league MVP and earn a championship ring. Both seem like very real possibilities.
The Celtics made big changes this offseason, most notably trading Marcus Smart to the Memphis Grizzlies in a move that facilitated the addition of big man Kristaps Porziņģis. It remains to be seen if that was an improvement or a questionable decision, given Smart's long-time status as the emotional leader of the team, but so long as Tatum and Jaylen Brown remain the Celtics will be contenders.
Winning is the thing in Boston, given the history of championships for the Celtics. While that hasn't happened yet for Tatum, he told Goodman his relationship with the city of Boston has continued to grow:
"Just recently I started to feel the connection with Boston. I have spent my adult life here, my son has grown up here, I've grown up here. I've accomplished so many things. It's happened so fast, and Boston has played such an intricate part of my life. I just feel like I relate more, a lot more in these last two years. At first it was like I live here, but I'm from St. Louis. I'm a St. Louis kid. Now I'm a part of Boston. I really feel a connection with the city and the people of Boston."
He added that he could potentially see himself playing out his entire career in Boston.
"You never know what can happen, but I love playing for the Celtics," he said. "I figured out my space in the city and have grown to really enjoy it. I love the fans. It would be really hard to leave this place."
