NBA

Tatum achievement 'hard to process' after becoming youngest Celtics player to 10,000 points

By Sports Desk November 05, 2023 1101

Jayson Tatum found it "hard to process" the achievement of becoming the Boston Celtics' youngest player to 10,000 points in NBA history after Saturday's win over the Brooklyn Nets.

Tatum was one of five Boston players to finish with double-figure scores as the Celtics improved to 5-0 for the new season with a 124-114 win over the Nets.

Victory marked a memorable outing for 25-year-old Tatum, too, as he brought up the points landmark for the Celtics – surpassing previous record holder Antoine Walker, who was 26.

"It's kind of hard to process," Tatum said. "In the moment, it's a huge accomplishment. I'm extremely blessed to be part of such a great franchise.

"I've just been fortunate to be on some really good teams; have some really, really good coaches and obviously have some great teammates that have helped contribute to 10,000 points along the way."

Tatum is the 10th player in NBA history to reach 10,000 career points before his 26th birthday.

The Celtics star joined an illustrious list that includes LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, Tracy McGrady, Devin Booker, Bob McAdoo, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Dwight Howard.

However, his record-breaking efforts came as no surprise to Boston coach Joe Mazzulla.

"He shows up to work every single day," Mazzulla said. "He puts in the work and he dedicates his life to it.

"He doesn't miss days. He doesn't miss practices, games. And just his open-mindedness and wanting to be coached and wanting to be held to a high standard.

"When you have guys like that – that you can coach – it also allows you to bring the best out of everybody else and so he's one of the guys that sets the tone for us."

The four-time All Star finished with 32 points and 11 rebounds against the Nets before acknowledging he could not have foreseen his achievements after being the number three pick in 2017.

"I was ignorant when I got drafted," added Tatum. "First of all, I didn't even want to come [to Boston] because I didn't think I was going to play.

"They had Gordon [Hayward], and JB [Jaylen Brown], and IT [Isaiah Thomas], and [Marcus] Smart; I didn't think I was good enough to be on that team.

"It's been a long process. I've had to learn through the ups and downs, through my mistakes of late-game decisions or whatever it may be; just growing pains and playing enough games, being in enough playoff series, you learn from those things."

Last modified on Sunday, 05 November 2023 10:40
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