The Boston Celtics have managed to rattle off five wins over their last seven outings and, in turn, look to be rediscovering their groove as the league closes in on the start of the playoffs.
With their recent string of success, however, there still appears to be a bit of jawing going about within the team’s locker room, albeit mostly in a friendly manner.
In a clip from a recent Celtics media session, Jayson Tatum disclosed how following his alma mater Duke’s elimination from the 2023 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, Grant Williams, whose Tennessee Volunteers beat them in round two, has been throwing shade at his expense.
“It’s been tough. Obviously, [it’s] tough for my guys down there in Durham losing in the second round. I felt bad for them. But losing to Grant, you know, he already talks enough so throwing gas to the fire didn’t help… Just some more s*** I got to deal with,” Tatum said.
Throughout his four-year tenure with the Celtics, Williams has established himself as being a willing trash talker, though sometimes his decisions to speak have come back to bite him.
Unfortunately for Tatum, with his Blue Devils now out of the tournament, the power forward certainly seems to have the upper hand in this friendly feud for the time being.
Jaylen Brown Pressed Celtics Over Trade Rumors
While the current tension between Jayson Tatum and Grant Williams is all in good fun, the reported rift between Jaylen Brown and the Boston Celtics earlier this season has proven to be very much real.
During a recent interview with The Ringer’s Logan Murdock, the All-Star wing opened up about his response to the pre-deadline rumblings that Brad Stevens and company were shopping him on the trade market, particularly for superstar forward, Kevin Durant.
Brown would bring to light that he took part in a three-way call between himself, Tatum, and Stevens in search of clarity regarding his status with the franchise moving forward and if there was any truth to the attention-grabbing rumors.
“Once we all got together and kind of talked it through, we all left on the same page,” Brown said. “But the actions that was taking place during that time, it just didn’t seem like that was the direction that the organization was going in. I don’t know. It was hard to tell, at least.”
Ultimately, the deadline wound up passing with Jaylen Brown remaining a member of the Boston Celtics, while Durant wound up being dealt to the Phoenix Suns.
Jaylen Brown’s Future With Celtics Uncertain
While Brown admitted to being “on the same page” following the mid-season conversation with Boston’s front office, an anonymous Eastern Conference executive told Heavy Sports’ Sean Deveney that it’s unlikely the wing will commit to the club long-term before the offseason.
“Jaylen is a smart man, he kind of sees through some of the BS of the league,” The GM told Deveney. “It would be of no advantage to him to come out and say, ‘Hell yeah, I want to stay in Boston and I’ll sign whatever they give me.’ That might be the popular answer, but he is not going to give the popular answer. Things change fast in the NBA, and who knows where they might be in two years?”
Brown has already admitted that he doesn’t know what his future holds as he inches closer to his final season under contract, and has stated that he will stay where he’s “wanted,” “needed,” and “treated correctly.”
For Celtics fans’ sake, let’s hope this place he’s describing winds up being Boston.