Walter McCarty says Jayson Tatum reminds him of a young Paul Pierce
Maybe it’s his crafty moves or the pull-up jumpers, but Jayson Tatum is already drawing comparisons to another Celtics small forward — even after just four NBA Summer League games.
“He reminds me a lot of Paul Pierce when he was young,” Celtics summer league coach Walter McCarty, who played six and a half seasons with Pierce, told reporters after Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Tatum, the No. 3 overall pick, had 27 points and 11 rebounds in the 86-81 win. In the three previous games in Utah, he averaged 18.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 46.8 percent shooting.
Per MassLive, McCarty expounded on how the 19-year-old compared to Pierce, a likely future Hall of Famer.
“He has that ability just to be cool. He doesn’t get too frantic. He doesn’t get nervous. He just lets the game come to him. And he’s got a quiet swag about him. It’s really fun to watch him when he does it. I get excited just watching him. And we’ve just got to keep building on that.”
Tatum’s poise was certainly on display during summer league debut, in which he hit a game-winning jumper off the dribble with less than six seconds left in the game. The shot drew more than a few comparisons to Pierce.
In the most recent game, it was Tatum’s footwork and midrange game that was most evocative of the former Celtic great.
27 points and 11 rebounds from Jayson Tatum push the @celtics to victory in Vegas! #NBASummer pic.twitter.com/k1GJ7ydgbC
— NBA (@NBA) July 9, 2017
Asked about McCarty’s remarks, Tatum said Pierce was one of his favorite players. He specifically cited Pierce’s footwork and “ability to create his own shot.”
“He’s not the most athletic guy and neither am I,” Tatum said. “The way he found ways to score at a high level and consistently — that’s the thing I looked at.”
It just goes to show, you’re never to young to have a good “old-man game.”
