‘I’m not the most vocal’: Jayson Tatum admits his ‘personality’s not like Kevin Garnett’s,’ but finds other ways to lead

Celtics star Jayson Tatum has already accomplished a lot in his young career. In his first four seasons, he’s made been named an All-Star twice, was named to an All-NBA team, improved his scoring each season, and helped the Celtics reach the Eastern Conference Finals twice.

Now in Year five, Tatum faces two big criticisms the most. With the Celtics falling short in the Eastern Conference Finals twice already in his career and losing to the Nets in the first round of the playoffs last year, several analysts have questioned why Tatum hasn’t been able to break through and reach the NBA Finals yet.

In an interview on ESPN+’s “Up Close with Stage Steele,” Tatum gave his take on why the Celtics haven’t been able to do so.

“It’s tough,” Tatum said. “On any given night, the opposing team is good enough to win. The guys in the NBA are that talented. So, it’s not easy.

“I always tip my hat off to the guys who win the championship since I’ve been in the league. I don’t know what it takes because I haven’t won, but I could only imagine how hard it is.”

The other criticism Tatum faces the most is his ability to lead. In his first full season as Boston’s top player last year, Tatum scored a career-best 26.2 points per game but the Celtics’ record dropped to 36-36. As Tatum’s scoring went up and the Celtics’ record went down, an unnamed Eastern Conference assistant coach told ESPN that “Jayson Tatum is about Jayson Tatum. I don’t think he cares about winning now, and if he does, it is on his terms.”

Tatum directly responded to that quote earlier in December, but he’s also been critiqued for not being vocal enough on the court. Tatum acknowledged that while he isn’t the most vocal player, he finds other ways to lead.

“They don’t know me and they don’t know our environment, or they didn’t speak to any of the guys I’ve played with,” Tatum said when asked about those who criticize him as a leader. “It’s always baffling that they’re not in it, but they get to critique what you’re doing and they don’t know anything about it.

“Ya, I’m not the most vocal. But I talk to my teammates all the time and the guys that I’ve played with and the guys in the organization, they know you’ve got to be yourself. Me, as much as I love him, my personality is not like Kevin Garnett’s. That doesn’t work for me. I’ve got to be true to myself and do things on my own way for it to be genuine.”

After the Celtics’ lackluster 2020-21 season, the team made big personnel changes with head coach Brad Stevens becoming president of basketball operations as Danny Ainge retired from that role. Stevens hired Nets assistant Ime Udoka to replace him on the bench while several of the players around Tatum, including star Kemba Walker, were shipped out or left on their own accord.

Tatum admitted that the front office and coaching changes were a “shock” to him. But with the changes around him, he realizes he needs to continue to step up each season.

“I had no idea that the coaching changes were going to be what it was, especially the day after the season ended for us,” Tatum said. “It’s still weird seeing Brad around and he’s not the coach anymore.

“I think that’s what I’m starting to really realize – change happens a lot in the NBA. It is a business. I have even more responsibility each year. More so from being like the guy to being more vocal, being more of a leader. It’s not just all about on-the-court stuff and I’m figuring that out. It’s something I’m working at as I get more mature, more older, more comfortable with what I’m doing – just bringing others together.”

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