Jayson Tatum's speedy ascent to All-Star puts Celtics on clear path towards contending

The Celtics didn’t have a clear path of action back towards immediate contention once Kyrie Irving and Al Horford indicated they were heading out the door last June. Bringing aboard Kemba Walker was a choice that made complete sense given his All-Star ability and terrific team-first reputation, but his own work as a player enough was not good enough to lift the Hornets to a playoff berth for much of the past decade.

Committing to an undersized 29-year-old guard to team up with a 21-year-old in Jayson Tatum, a 23-year-old in Jaylen Brown and a former All-Star with injury question marks in Gordon Hayward was an intriguing move from a franchise timeline perspective for Danny Ainge. Tatum and Brown’s primes lined up more with the back end of Walker and Hayward’s careers unless of course, both younger players were able to make some kind of an All-Star level leap in the near term.

Tatum officially made that hope for the Celtics a reality on Thursday night when the 6-foot-8 swingman was named an All-Star reserve by the East coaches. The usually reserved forward couldn’t help but express his joy after the C’s convincing win over the Warriors.

“I was surprised,” he said. “Once you finally hear. I wanted to cry. I didn't cry. I might cry later, though. But I'm just so grateful. It's something I'm not going to take for granted. There's only 24 guys who make the All-Star team, so I'm super thankful and I'm going to enjoy the opportunity of the moment.”

While Tatum was the only Celtic selected as a reserve to join starter Walker in Chicago next month, Thursday’s win over the Warriors was another instance when those two players weren’t necessarily the best Celtics on the floor for large chunks of the night. Hayward was never considered a serious threat for an All-Star berth by most coaches after missing more than a month with a broken hand but continued his recent tear against the Warriors with a game-high 25 points on 8-of-15 shooting. It was his fourth consecutive game scoring 20 points or more, the first time he’s done that in a Celtic uniform.

Meanwhile, Brown added another productive night himself (18 points, 7 rebounds) despite getting snubbed by the East coaches in the midst of one of the best offensive seasons for a non-center in the league when it comes to shooting efficiency.

“I’m not disappointed,” Brown said of getting passed over. “I think it’s a lot of guys that they have to choose from, a lot of guys having a good year. It is what it is. Just start gearing up your mind, getting ready for the playoffs and stuff like that. Building good habits.”

While Brown looked to have the edge in several offensive categories over Tatum when it comes to efficiency, the coaches still made the right choice on this one if only one of Brown/Tatum was going to make the cut, for the reasons Steve Kerr pointed out before the game.

“He’s just so gifted,” Kerr said. “He’s so talented. His rise has been, I think, expected in a lot of ways because of his talent. But that would be selling him short too because it doesn’t just happen. He’s put the work in. I think he’s a really good teammate, he’s a guy who has the ability to be one of the best two-way players in the game. And I think you’re seeing that defensively this year. And he has a great environment playing in this organization, playing for Brad and his staff. All of those things have mattered and helped him develop. I’m really happy for him because I really enjoyed him (with Team USA).”

While Tatum may be the only second All-Star for now on the team, the truth of the matter is both Tatum, Brown and even Hayward are all playing at an All-Star level in the present as the C’s have rolled out to a 32-15 start riding the contributions of that trio and Walker.

“We’ve said all along the most important thing is not to be named an All-Star it’s to be playing like one," Brad Stevens said of the decisions. "Both (Tatum and Brown) are playing like one, both of them have had great years. … I mean, this is about making the next right play over and over. And whatever individual accolades you get, you get. And also, whatever you don’t, it’s OK too. The bottom line is, we don’t necessarily concern ourselves with the subjective voting. It’s how well you play. And both those guys have played so well it’s great to be in the conversation. And it’s too bad they both can’t go. But from our standpoint, they’re both our All-Stars. So we’re excited to play through both.”

With Hayward rounding back into his former self and Walker already a proven commodity, the Celtics now have a top-four talent core that could rival most teams across the league. The youth has developed quick enough to the point where this Celtics team could have the best of both worlds with their mix of youth and experience over the next couple of seasons, thanks to Tatum turning into an All-Star ahead of schedule, the second youngest Celtic in team history to do it (next to Antoine Walker).

“I’ve been watching the All-Star game ever since I’ve been watching basketball,” Tatum said. “I’d always get Kobe’s All-Star jersey and I always had aspirations of one day being in the All-Star game. And at 21 years old to make it a reality, I can’t put it into words. It’s a special feeling.”

With the C’s back at full strength among their best five players on Thursday with Tatum back on the floor, they improved to 9-5 on the year with their usual starting lineup. The goal now is to take advantage of the unique opportunity to have talent like this meshing together so well.

“For us, we just try to see what we have done to be successful with us five on the court, and we just try to continue to harp on it and grasp it and keep going with it,” Smart said. “Even when those guys are not on the court together, we had a couple injuries that kind of sidelined a few of us, so it was just hard for us to get on the court together, so the times that we do, we’ve got to cherish it, we’ve got to enjoy it. We’ve got to learn to take that energy and keep going with it, especially when guys go out.”

“I felt like I hadn’t played in a month,” Tatum added. “It was fun to get out there in front of our fans and just be out there with the guys. I missed it.”