Noa from CelticsBlog has an article about Tatum addressing the trade of his fellow Jay when he was at the Newton Community Stage being interviewed by Howard Bryant at the launch of his new baby book ?Baby Dunks-a-Lot: The Day the Basketballs Stopped Bouncing.?
Some excerpts:
?The NBA is an incredible business; it?s an incredible job, but there are some downsides to the business and moments like this, where you just kind of feel like you?re going to be on the team with somebody, because that?s all you know,? he said. ?And then it?s just like, one day you find out that they?re no longer on your team anymore. And, we?re all humans. We feel all those emotions. Going into the facility, and knowing that you have different teammates, and somebody that you?ve been to war with, essentially, is on a different team??
Together, Tatum and Brown made five Eastern Conference Finals and two NBA Finals.
In 2024, they won their first title as a duo.
?It?s tough. But it just makes you appreciate the moments and time that we had,? Tatum said. ?Obviously, it came to an abrupt ending, but it doesn?t mean that it wasn?t super successful. Great years, obviously, that he gave to the city and to the organization.?
Brad Stevens, who addressed reporters in a press conference on Monday, said that Tatum did not have any input in the decision to trade Brown.
?I have a real hard-and-fast rule,? Stevens said. ?I don?t ask guys about other guys.?
In lieu of Jaylen Brown (and Nikola Vucevic, who departed in free agency), Tatum now welcomes a slew of new teammates like Paul George, Mike Conley, and Mitchell Robinson, among others.
All three players were at the Auerbach Center this week and took photos with their brand-new Celtics jerseys.
?The tough part is you miss teammates, but then you have new teammates, and you want to welcome those guys and accept them and move forward with them,? Tatum said. ?So there is a balance there.?
https://www.celticsblog.com/boston-celtics-news/143189/jayson-tatum-jaylen-brown-trade-reaction
Let's get some speculation and rumors going...do we think he really didn't know? Do we believe Brad when he says Tatum didn't have a say, as a kingmaker? The Littlefinger to Brad's Cersei Lannister? For that matter, is Brad more Ned Stark or Cersei?