The Keys To A Strong Regular Season Finish For Celtics Star Jayson Tatum (Besides Scoring)

Boston's quest for Banner 18 will hinge heavily on Jayson Tatum's continued growth in these key areas of play.

PHILADELPHIA - When you have been looking forward to the playoffs as much as Jayson Tatum has this season, it’s easy to mentally skip ahead a few games regardless of how good the opponent may be.

But as we get closer to Boston’s latest attempt at winning an NBA title with Tatum as the lead, we’re starting to see more and more of Top-5 Tatum. 

Because when he’s in that mode, which we saw during his All-Star MVP performance earlier this month, he can be an unstoppable scorer if you’re not careful. 

That’s why Tatum, maybe more than any Celtics player, needs to play well during this final stretch of the season.

Boston has shown on more than one occasion they can play well without Tatum, whether it's for an extended stretch in a game or for an entire four quarters. 

They have that kind of depth and talent.

But there will be no Duck parade in Boston if Tatum is anything less than Top-5 Tatum come playoff time. 

And for him to be that player when it counts most, there are two other things besides scoring he has to do in this final ramp-up toward the playoffs.