Examining Jayson Tatum’s Impressive NBA Season Debut

Drew Hanlen, Jayson Tatum’s trainer, texted him shortly after the Boston Celtics’ NBA Finals defeat to the Golden State Warriors.

“Hey, you’re going to be back was the first text I sent to him. And you’re gonna be better because of this,'” Basketball News was informed by Hanlen.

Hanlen anticipated that Tatum would become more determined after the Finals defeat. Over the offseason, Hanlen predicted that Tatum was about to make a big leap and become a “monster.” He observed the effort Tatum was making and the tremendous potential he still possessed.

“I mean, Jayson went on an unbelievable run. He’s 24 years old and he’s been to three Eastern Conference Finals and one NBA Finals. He’s a two-time All-NBA [selection], a three-time All-Star and a two-time All-Star starter,” Hanlen said last summer. “And he’s got so much room to grow.”

Tatum also had a full offseason to improve his game for the first time in a few years.

“When we look at the last couple years, he hasn’t really had offseasons as much,” Hanlen informed me in July. “We had about two weeks off the previous year, and then he went and played, and he started off really slowly. That year, they started out in the bubble and advanced all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals. We have a couple of weeks of offseason, and he starts off really slowly. Then, [the following summer], he goes to play with USA Basketball and wins a gold medal. We finally had a full offseason this year, allowing him to start the season strong rather than easing into it.”

Hanlen gave the following answers when asked what Tatum focused on over the summer: driving through contact, playing through fouls, and finishing at the rim.

In addition, he wanted Tatum to shoot threes and pull-up jumpers more consistently, especially early in the season (instead of struggling early and getting better as the game went on, as he had in previous seasons).

Tatum’s offseason work is obviously paying off. Averaging 30.8 points, 8.1 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 3.2 threes, 1.1 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game on.472 shooting, he is having a career year./351/.856 shooting splits.

He is completing 71% of his shot attempts at the rim this season, which is a career high, according to Cleaning The Glass. Additionally, 14.4% of Tatum’s shot attempts result in a shooting foul, the highest percentage of his career (and an increase from 11% last season). This falls into the 81st percentile for forwards.

To Hanlen’s point about shooting well early in the season, Tatum did shoot the ball exceptionally well in the early going. He made 55.7% of his field goals, 40.8% of his three-point attempts, and 90.2% of his free throws in October.

Tatum was extremely productive to start the season, as evidenced by a comparison to his recent early-season output. Here’s a look at his pre-Christmas numbers over the last four years:

2022-23: 55.2 eFG% | 70% at rim | 36% 3PT

2021-22: 48.5 eFG% | 60% at rim | 33% 3PT

2020-21*: 50.4 eFG% | 63% at rim | 38% 3PT

2019-20: 48.6 eFG% | 54% at rim | 36% 3PT

*These are his stats up to February because the 2020–21 season did not begin until later. 25 — a similar two-month span.

Tatum has recently found it difficult to keep up this effectiveness. In recent weeks, he’s been experiencing a little shooting slump, especially from beyond the arc. Although most sportsbooks give Tatum the second- or third-best odds to win the award, he has nonetheless emerged as a serious MVP contender.

Currently holding the best record in the NBA, the Celtics are 28-12. Their offense, which ranks first in the league (scoring 115.8 points for every 100 possessions), is complemented by a defense that is tenth in the league (allowing 109.5 points for every 100 possessions).

Hanlen can’t wait to dunk on Tatum’s doubters if he finally hoists the Larry O’Brien trophy because Boston is committed to making another Finals run.

“When he lost the Finals, that whole night, I don’t think I caught my second wind. Like, it felt like I lost; my gut was turning, and I wasn’t even out there playing,” Hanlen told me in July. “It’s just, I felt what he felt. 

“For about the next hour, I wasted an hour of my time screen-shotting all these notable analysts or notable people with big followings that were criticizing, hating and doubting Jayson, and I put them all in a folder. And I cannot wait to arrogantly send them out when he finally holds up a championship trophy.”

Source: basketballnews.com