Jayson Tatum settles nickname debate following emergence of ‘The Anomaly’
"'Big Deuce' is cool."
Jayson Tatum has been at the center of several debates for much of his eight-year career, but the latest one doesn’t involve his on-court play.
Fans and media members have tried to give Tatum a permanent nickname over the last few weeks. One in particular has seemed to take off, with several Celtics fans calling Tatum “The Anomaly” on social media as of late.
In fact, “The Anomaly” nickname has become so popular online that the Trail Blazers called Tatum by the name in a social media post previewing their game against the Celtics Wednesday. Basketball Reference has even listed it as one of Tatum’s nicknames, too.
“Player A” has also taken off in the social media-sphere as a nickname for Tatum, based off a quote he used in a Washington Post feature. Fox Sports’ Colin Cowherd recently gave Tatum a few nicknames as well, but in a demeaning manner. He offered up “The Password” because he’s “commonly forgotten.”
Well, Tatum didn’t put up a forgotten performance in the Celtics’ win over the Lakers on Saturday. He scored 40 points as he outdueled LeBron James and Luka Doncic in a matchup hyped as a potential NBA Finals preview.
After handling business on the court, Tatum answered the big question: Do you have a favorite nickname?
“Uhh, yeah,” Tatum said after a laugh. “Depending on our relationship, certain people call me different things. A lot of my friends call me ‘Taco’ [and] ‘Big Deuce.’ I’ve seen Portland tweeted out ‘The Anomaly.'”
Tatum doesn’t seem to be a fan of the new moniker.
“Ahhh, I don’t know,” Tatum said when asked if he likes being call “The Anomaly.”
“‘Big Deuce’ is cool,” he said.
“Taco Jay” and “Big Deuce” have been two of Tatum’s main nicknames for much of his career. The story behind the “Taco Jay” nickname is as simple as it sounds, playing off Tatum’s love for tacos. That nickname inspired Air Jordan to release a “Taco Jay” colorway of the Jordan 36 sneakers.
As for “Big Deuce,” that nickname is a play on the nickname of Tatum’s son, who is called “Deuce” instead of Jayson Tatum Jr.
“The Anomaly,” meanwhile, was offered up as a nickname for Tatum in January. X user @Mahcus_Smaht appeared to be the first person to call Tatum “The Anomaly.”
“Handles like someone 6 inches shorter, shoots pull-ups like a guard, finishes at the rim like a center, and consistently defends 1-5,” @Mahcus_Smaht wrote in his explanation for the nickname.
If Tatum’s wish to be called “Big Deuce” wasn’t enough to end the debate, the Celtics ran a poll on X to determine what their top star’s nickname should be. “Big Deuce” won with 38.7 percent of the vote, taking down “The Anomaly” (32.1 percent), “Player A” (20 percent), and “Taco Jay” (9.2 percent).
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