Boston Celtics (2017–present) 2017–18 season: Rookie season in April 2018
Boston Celtics general manager
Danny Ainge traded the team's
No. 1 overall pick in the
2017 NBA draft to the
Philadelphia 76ers for the third overall pick, which the Celtics used to select Jayson Tatum. Tatum was the Celtics' second consecutive No. 3 pick for a small forward, following
Jaylen Brown in 2016, whom Tatum formed a
duo with. During the
2017 NBA Summer League event in Utah, Tatum averaged 18.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.3 steals, and 2.0 assists in nearly 33 minutes of action. Later, in Las Vegas, Tatum produced similar results, averaging 17.7 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and 0.8 blocks in nearly 32 minutes of action in three games. Tatum was named to the All-Summer League Second Team alongside
Bryn Forbes,
Cheick Diallo,
Wayne Selden Jr., and
Kyle Kuzma. In his NBA debut on October 17, 2017, Tatum recorded a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds as the team's starting power forward during the season-opening 102–99 loss to the
Cleveland Cavaliers. He then recorded a season-high 24 points in a 110–89 victory over the
New York Knicks on October 24. Tatum was named the Eastern Conference's Rookie of the Month for December 2017. The Celtics finished the season with a 55–27 record, entering the
2018 NBA playoffs as the #2-seed in the Eastern Conference. On April 15, 2018, in Game 1 of the first-round series against the #7-seed
Milwaukee Bucks, Tatum recorded a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds in a 113–107 overtime victory. Exactly a week later in Game 4, he broke his playoff-high with 21 points, and then broke it again on April 26 in Game 6 with 22. Two days later, the Celtics defeated the Bucks in Game 7 by a score of 112–96, with Tatum scoring 20 points. On April 30, in Game 1 of the second-round series against the #3-seed
Philadelphia 76ers, Tatum had a then career-high 28 points during a 117–101 victory, becoming the first Celtics rookie to score 25 or more points in a playoff game since
Larry Bird during the
1980 NBA playoffs, also against the
76ers. Three days later, after posting 21 points in a Game 2 108–103 victory, Tatum became the youngest player ever to score at least 20 points in four straight playoff games at the age of , surpassing
Kobe Bryant who accomplished that feat during the
1999 NBA playoffs at the age of . After leading the Celtics with 24 points in a Game 3 101–98 overtime victory in Philadelphia on May 5, Tatum became the first Celtics rookie to score 20 points in five straight playoff games. Bird held the previous record of four. At the end of his playoff run, Tatum joined
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the only rookies in playoff history to record 10 games of 20 or more points scored during their first playoff runs;
LeBron James praised Tatum's work, stating: "He's built for stardom." On May 22, 2018, Tatum was named to the
NBA All-Rookie Team (First Team).
2018–19 season: Sophomore season On October 16, 2018, during the season-opening 105–87 victory over the
Philadelphia 76ers, Tatum recorded 23 points, nine rebounds, and three assists. Four days later, he had 24 points and 14 rebounds in a narrow 103–101 victory over the
New York Knicks. On October 25, Tatum tallied 24 points and six rebounds in a 101–95 victory over the
Oklahoma City Thunder. On November 16, he recorded 21 points and seven rebounds in a 123–116 overtime victory over the
Toronto Raptors. On December 25, Tatum had 23 points and 10 rebounds in a 121–114 overtime victory over the
Philadelphia 76ers. On February 5, 2019, he recorded 25 points and seven rebounds in a 103–96 victory over the
Cleveland Cavaliers. On March 6, Tatum recorded 24 points, three rebounds, and two assists in a 126–120 victory over the
Sacramento Kings. During
NBA All-Star Weekend, he won the
Skills Challenge competition.
2019–20 season: First All-Star and All-NBA appearances On December 22, 2019, Tatum recorded a then career-high 39 points, along with 12 rebounds, in a 119–93 victory over the
Charlotte Hornets. He would exceed that with a then career-high 41 points against the
New Orleans Pelicans in a 140–105 victory on January 11, 2020. On January 30, Tatum was named an
NBA All-Star for the first time in his career, being selected as an Eastern Conference reserve. On February 13, Tatum would again score 39 points, while playing 47 minutes and leading the Celtics to a 141–133 double-overtime victory over the
Los Angeles Clippers. On February 23, he matched his then career-high 41 points in a narrow 114–112 loss to the
Los Angeles Lakers. As the season was halted by the
COVID-19 pandemic, Tatum shot 2-of-18 in a 119–112 loss to the
Milwaukee Bucks on July 31, but he bounced back the next game scoring 34 points on 11-of-22 shooting in a 128–124 victory over the
Portland Trail Blazers on August 2. Tatum was named to the
All-NBA Third Team and his first selection of his career. In the
2020 NBA playoffs, the Celtics were able to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals for the second time in Tatum's three years in the NBA following series victories over the
Philadelphia 76ers and
Toronto Raptors in four and seven games, respectively. However, Boston was eliminated in the Conference Finals by the
Miami Heat in six games. In Game 1, with the Celtics trailing by two in the closing seconds, Tatum's game-tying dunk attempt was blocked by Heat center
Bam Adebayo with 4.8 seconds left and propelled Miami to a 117–114 victory.
2020–21 season: Play-in appearance and first round exit On November 22, 2020, Tatum and the Celtics agreed to a rookie maximum extension of five years, worth $163 million, with the possibility of it rising to $195.6 million if Tatum made All-NBA in the 2020–21 season. During the narrow season-opening 122–121 victory over the
Milwaukee Bucks on December 23, 2020, Tatum totaled 30 points and seven rebounds, alongside a game-winning three-pointer. On January 3, 2021, he had 24 points and a career-high 12 assists and made another game-winning shot in a narrow 122–120 victory over the
Detroit Pistons. The next day, Tatum scored a season-high 40 points in a 126–114 victory over the
Toronto Raptors. On January 9, it was confirmed that he had tested positive for
COVID-19 and missed multiple games. On February 23, Tatum was named an Eastern Conference reserve for the
2021 NBA All-Star Game, marking his second All-Star game in a row. On April 9, Tatum had a then-career-high 53 points, 16 made field goals, and 15 made free throws in a 145–136 victory over the
Minnesota Timberwolves. With his career night, Tatum was the youngest Celtics player to score 50+ points; he also scored the third-highest number of points in a Celtics uniform, behind
Larry Bird and
Kevin McHale, and became the second player in Celtics history to score 50+ points and grab 10+ rebounds since Bird did so back in November 1989. Tatum and
Zach LaVine of the
Chicago Bulls became the second pair of players in the 2020–21 season to score 50+ points on the same day. On April 19, Tatum recorded his first career triple-double with 14 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 102–96 loss to the Bulls. On May 4, Tatum brought the Celtics back from a 32-point deficit against the
San Antonio Spurs, a performance that produced the third-largest comeback in NBA history and gave Tatum a career-high of 60 points, tying him with Larry Bird for the highest points total by a Celtics player. Tatum was one of three players to score 60+ points without a single turnover and was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week after averaging 42.7 points per game, 6.0 assists per game, and 6.0 rebounds per game. In the first game of the
play-in tournament on May 18, Tatum scored 50 points, guiding the Celtics to a 118–100 victory over the
Washington Wizards and cementing the team as the #7-seed in the
Eastern Conference into the
2021 NBA playoffs;
Kemba Walker, Tatum's teammate, had 29 points while only one other player (
Tristan Thompson) had 10 or more points. Tatum set the record for most points in a single play-in tournament game, became one of an elite list of players who scored 50+ points in play-ins/playoffs, and singlehandedly outscored the Wizards in the third quarter and part of the fourth, and was a perfect 17/17 from the free throw line. On May 28, in Game 3 of the first-round series against the
Brooklyn Nets and their "Big Three" (
Kevin Durant,
James Harden, and
Kyrie Irving), Tatum scored 50 points on 50% shooting (16/30), and put up six rebounds, seven assists, and two steals in the 125–119 victory. With the feat, he achieved a variety of records, becoming the first player in NBA playoff history to score 50 points after scoring single digits the previous game; Tatum also passed 1,000 points in the playoffs and became the fifth-highest postseason point scorer at age 23 or younger in NBA history as well as the first Celtics player since
Isaiah Thomas to score 50+ points in the NBA playoffs and the third youngest player in NBA playoff history to reach that mark in a single game. In terms of franchise records, Tatum became just the sixth player in Celtics history to score 50+ points in a playoff game; he also became the only player in NBA history to score 50+ points more than once in the regular season, 50+ points in a play-in game, and 50+ points in the playoffs. Despite losing to the Nets in five games, Tatum set a Celtics franchise record for most points scored in a three-game span in the playoffs, with a combined total of 122 points.
2021–22 season: All-NBA First Team selection and first NBA Finals Tatum led the league in
plus-minus for the first time in his fifth season, cementing his status as one of the most valuable players in the NBA. On October 25, 2021, in a 140–129 overtime victory over the
Charlotte Hornets, Tatum recorded 41 points, seven rebounds, and eight assists to lead the Celtics to their first win of the season. On January 23, 2022, he scored a then season-high 51 points along with 10 rebounds, seven assists, and a career-high nine three-pointers in a blowout 116–87 victory over the
Washington Wizards. On February 3, Tatum was selected for his third consecutive All-Star appearance. On March 3, Tatum scored 21 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter to go along with six rebounds and five assists in a 120–107 victory over the
Memphis Grizzlies. Three days later against the
Brooklyn Nets, Tatum topped his season-high with 54 points, scoring 34 of them in the second half of the 126–120 victory. This was the fourth time Tatum had netted 50+ points in a game in his career, tying
Larry Bird for the most 50-point games in Celtics history. On March 7, Tatum was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week after averaging 41.3 points per game, 6.3 rebounds per game, and 5.0 assists per game. Two days later against the Hornets, Tatum scored 16 of his 44 points in the fourth quarter of a 115–101 victory. On March 18, in a 126–97 victory over the
Sacramento Kings, Tatum and
Jaylen Brown each scored at least 30 points in the same game for the fourth time in the season and eighth time overall; this tied the record of most such games with fellow Celtics Larry Bird and
Kevin McHale, who also recorded four such games in the
1986–87 NBA season. In the next game, a 124–104 victory over the
Denver Nuggets, Tatum and Brown broke the record by both scoring 30 points with over 60% shooting from the field. On March 28, Tatum became the first player in franchise history to be named Player of the Week in back-to-back weeks. On April 17, during Game 1 of the first round of the playoffs against the Nets, Tatum had 31 points and eight assists. He hit the game-winning layup to narrowly win 115–114. Six days later in Game 3, Tatum posted 39 points, five rebounds, six assists, and a playoff career-high six steals in the 109–103 victory. On April 25, the Celtics swept the Nets 116–112 to advance to the second round of the playoffs. On May 9, in Game 4 of the
Eastern Conference Semifinals, Tatum recorded 30 points, 13 rebounds, and five assists during a 116–108 victory over the reigning champion
Milwaukee Bucks to tie the series at 2–2. Six days later in Game 6, he tallied 46 points, nine rebounds, and four assists to lead the Celtics to a 108–95 victory and force a Game 7 in Boston. On May 15, in Game 7, Tatum posted 23 points, six rebounds, and eight assists in a 109–81 victory, thus securing the Celtics a place in the
Eastern Conference Finals. On May 23, in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Tatum recorded 31 points, eight rebounds, and five assists in a 102–82 blowout victory over the
Miami Heat to tie the series at 2–2. During the decisive Game 7 of the series six days later, he had 26 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists in a 100–96 victory to lead the Celtics to their first
NBA Finals appearance since 2010. Tatum was named the inaugural
Eastern Conference Finals MVP after averaging 25.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game in the series. During Game 1 of the Finals on June 2, he led the Celtics to a 120–108 comeback victory over the
Golden State Warriors with 13 assists, the most assists recorded by a player in his Finals debut. The Celtics lost the series in six games despite a 2–1 lead. Tatum set the all-time NBA record with 100 turnovers in a single postseason.
2022–23 season: All-Star Game MVP On November 30, 2022, Tatum recorded 49 points and 11 rebounds while making eight three-pointers in a 134–121 victory over the
Miami Heat. He became the youngest player in NBA history to make 900 three-pointers, doing so at 24 years old and surpassing the previous record set by
Bradley Beal at 25 years old. Tatum became the first NBA player to record multiple games of at least 45 points, 10 rebounds, and eight three-pointers. He also became the sixth NBA player to have multiple games with 45 points or more with 10 or more rebounds while committing at most one turnover, joining
Anthony Davis (six games),
Michael Jordan,
Giannis Antetokounmpo (three each),
Kobe Bryant and
Carmelo Anthony (two each). Tatum was named Eastern Conference Player of the Month, averaging 31.6 points per game, 7.8 rebounds per game, and 4.5 assists per game in October and November. On December 13, Tatum recorded 44 points, nine rebounds, and six assists in a 122–118 overtime victory over the
Los Angeles Lakers. On December 25, Tatum scored 20 of his 41 points in the third quarter to go along with seven rebounds, five assists, and three steals in a 139–118 blowout victory over the
Milwaukee Bucks. He and Jaylen Brown (29 points) combined for 70 points in a game for the eighth time in their careers. On January 5, 2023, Tatum put up his second career triple-double with 29 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 124–95 victory over the
Dallas Mavericks. Six days later against the
New Orleans Pelicans, Tatum had 31 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists in a 125–114 victory. It was the tenth time that he and Brown (41 points) combined to score 70+ points. The Celtics were undefeated in those games. On January 16, Tatum scored a season-high 51 points, along with nine rebounds and five assists on 15-of-23 shooting, 7-of-12 from three, and 14-of-14 from the free throw line during a 130–118 victory over the
Charlotte Hornets. He also surpassed
Larry Bird for the most 50-point regular season games in Celtics history. Three days later against the
Golden State Warriors, in a rematch of the
2022 NBA Finals, Tatum recorded 34 points alongside a career-high 19 rebounds, six assists, and three steals during the 121–118 overtime victory. He became the first Celtic to record 30+ points, 15+ rebounds, and 5+ assists in a game since
Paul Pierce did so in 2002. Tatum also became the tenth player in NBA history to reach 9,000 career points before the age of 25. On January 26, Tatum was named an
Eastern Conference starter for the
2023 NBA All-Star Game, marking his fourth overall selection and first as a starter. On February 10, he scored 41 points on 5-of-10 shooting from three-point range in a 127–116 victory over the Hornets, becoming the youngest player at 24 years and 244 days old to reach 1,000 career three-pointers. On February 19, playing for the
NBA All-Star Game, Tatum tallied 55 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists, breaking
Anthony Davis's previous All-Star record high of 52 points, and also won the game's Most Valuable Player award. Tatum also became the first player in NBA history to score at least 50 points in the regular season, the playoffs, and the All-Star Game. On February 25, he had 18 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists while also making the game-winning three-pointer in a 110–107 victory over the
Philadelphia 76ers. On March 18, Tatum became the first player of the season to score at least 2,000 points in a 118–117 loss to the
Utah Jazz. Three days later, he scored 36 points in a 132–109 victory over the
Sacramento Kings. It was Tatum's 39th 30-point game of the season, tying Larry Bird's record for the most 30-point games in a season in Celtics history. On March 24, Tatum scored 34 points, setting a franchise record with his 40th 30-point game of the season, and the Celtics rolled to a 120–95 victory over the
Indiana Pacers. Six days later, Tatum put up 40 points on 12-of-18 shooting from the field (8-of-10 from deep) in a 140–99 blowout victory over the
Milwaukee Bucks. He also surpassed Paul Pierce for the second-most 40-point games in Celtics history with 22. Tatum finished the season with a 30.1 points per game average, becoming the only player in Celtics history to average at least 30 points per game in a season. His 2,225 total points scored throughout the season was also a league-best mark. On April 27, in Game 6 of the first-round playoff series against the
Atlanta Hawks, Tatum recorded 30 points, 14 rebounds, and six assists during the 128–120 close-out victory. On May 14, in Game 7 of the
Eastern Conference Semifinals, he scored a playoff career-high 51 points in a 112–88 victory over the
Philadelphia 76ers. Among several records broken, his performance surpassed
Stephen Curry (50 points), who had held the record weeks earlier, for the most scored in a game 7, and Tatum became the first player in Celtics history to put up multiple 50-point playoff games. On May 23, Game 4 of the
Eastern Conference Finals, Tatum posted 33 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists in a 116–99 victory over the Heat. He also surpassed Paul Pierce for the most playoff three-pointers made in Celtics history. The Celtics lost the series in seven games, despite rallying from a 3–0 deficit to force a Game 7.
2023–24 season: First NBA championship On November 4, 2023, Tatum recorded 32 points and 11 rebounds in a 124–114 victory over the
Brooklyn Nets and became the youngest Celtic to reach 10,000 career points at 25 years and 246 days of age. On November 20, he scored a season-high 45 points to go along with 13 rebounds and six assists in a 121–118 overtime loss to the
Charlotte Hornets. On January 25, 2024, Tatum was named an
Eastern Conference starter for the
2024 NBA All-Star Game, marking his fifth consecutive selection and his second selection in a row as a starter. On February 13, 2024, Tatum put up 41 points, 31 of them in the first half—tying his career high for points scored in a first half—14 rebounds, five assists, and five three-pointers in a 118–110 victory over the
Brooklyn Nets. He also joined
Larry Bird as the only players in Celtics franchise history to put up at least 25 40-point games. On March 9, Tatum and Brown combined for 56 points in a 117–107 victory over the
Phoenix Suns; Tatum became the third Celtic to record 1,000 three-pointers, joining
Paul Pierce and teammate Brown. The Celtics finished the regular season with the NBA's top seed and home-court advantage throughout the postseason for the first time since
2007–08. before the parade. On April 21, in Game 1 of the Celtics'
first round playoff series against the
Miami Heat, Tatum notched his first career playoff triple-double with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 114–94 victory. In Game 1 of the
Eastern Conference Finals against the
Indiana Pacers on May 21, Tatum scored 36 points, including 10 in overtime, along with 12 rebounds, four assists, and three steals in a 133–128 victory. Four days later in Game 3, he had 36 points again during a 114–111 comeback victory. The Celtics won the series in four games and advanced to the
2024 NBA Finals. Tatum became the sixth player in NBA history after
Tim Duncan,
Jason Kidd,
LeBron James,
Nikola Jokić, and
Luka Dončić to lead their team in points, rebounds, and assists while reaching the
NBA Finals. In Game 2 of the
2024 NBA Finals against the
Dallas Mavericks on June 9, Tatum recorded a near triple-double with 18 points, 12 assists, and nine rebounds in a 105–98 victory. Three days later in Game 3, he had 31 points, six rebounds, and five assists in 106–99 victory. Tatum and Jaylen Brown became the first Celtics duo to each post at least 30/5/5 in an NBA Finals game. In doing so, they also surpassed Larry Bird and
Kevin McHale for the most 25-point games as a Celtics duo in playoff history. The Celtics went on to win the series in five games, with Tatum recording 31 points, 11 assists, and eight rebounds during the 106–88 close-out victory in Game 5 on June 17. Tatum became the sixth player to lead his team in points, rebounds and assists during a championship run. The only other players to do this were Nikola Jokić, LeBron James, Tim Duncan,
Hakeem Olajuwon and Larry Bird. Tatum also led the Celtics in all three categories during the NBA Finals.
2024–25 season: Record-breaking extension and season ending Achilles rupture On July 1, 2024, Tatum signed a five-year contract extension worth up to $314 million, surpassing his superstar teammate Jaylen Brown's $304 million extension as the richest deal in NBA history. On November 16, 2024, Tatum put up 24 points, 11 rebounds, and nine assists, alongside a buzzer-beating, game-winning three-pointer in a 126–123 overtime win over the
Toronto Raptors. On December 21, Tatum scored a season-high 43 points along with 15 rebounds and 10 assists in a 123–98 win over the
Chicago Bulls. He became just the fifth player in NBA history to record 40+ points, 15+ rebounds, 10+ assists and 5+ 3s in a game, joining
James Harden (2x),
DeMarcus Cousins,
Russell Westbrook and
Vince Carter. Tatum is also the first player in Celtics history to record 40+ points, 15+ boards and 10+ dimes in a game. He also joined
Larry Bird as the only Celtics with 40-point triple-doubles. On January 25, 2025, Tatum was named an
Eastern Conference starter for the
2025 NBA All-Star Game, marking his sixth consecutive selection and his third selection in a row as a starter. On February 20, Tatum put up his fourth career triple-double with 15 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 124–104 win. On February 28, Tatum recorded season-highs with 46 points and 16 rebounds along with nine assists and three blocks in a 123–116 loss against the
Cleveland Cavaliers. He had 30 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in the opening 24 minutes, the first player ever to reach those totals in a half during the play-by-play era (1997–98). On April 29, in Game 5 of the first round of the playoffs, Tatum scored 35 points on 10-for-16 shooting, 4-for-5 from 3-point range and a perfect 11-for-11 from the free-throw line, to go along with eight rebounds and 10 assists in a 120–89 close-out win over the
Orlando Magic. Tatum became the first player in NBA history to make 10-plus free throws without a miss in three consecutive playoff games. He went 37 for 37 at the free throw line over a three-game span and missed just four free throws in the entire five-game series (37-for-41). He also had three straight playoff games with 35-plus points to become only the second Celtics' player to accomplish that feat, joining Larry Bird. On May 12, in Game 4 of the second round of the playoffs, Tatum scored 42 points, along with eight rebounds, four assists, four steals, and two blocks, in a 121–113 loss to the
New York Knicks. He also tied Larry Bird and
John Havlicek for the most 40-point playoff games in Celtics franchise history with five. However, in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, Tatum suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon. He had surgery to repair it the next day, and was sidelined for the rest of the season, which ended in a 119–81 loss in game 6.
2025–26 season: Recovery from injury Ten months after rupturing his Achilles, Tatum returned and made his
2025–26 season debut on March 6, 2026, against the
Dallas Mavericks, in which he recorded 15 points along with 12 rebounds and seven assists in a 120–100 win. On April 1, Tatum notched his fifth career triple-double with 25 points, 18 rebounds, and 11 assists in a 147–129 win over the
Miami Heat. ==National team career==