Celtics’ Jayson Tatum Downplays Constant Criticism With Mic Drop Moment

The ongoing clash with Celtics star Jayson Tatum and former NBA guard Brandon Jennings looks to have come to an end — thanks to a mic drop comment from the Boston forward.

The Boston Globe’s Gary Washburn asked Tatum if being the “focus of a lot of shots” by opposing teams in-game and on social media drives him to want to play “more angry” after the Celtics’ blowout win over the Orlando Magic on Friday.

“I don’t know. I guess, I’m a big deal,” Tatum told reporters and walked off the podium.

Tatum bounced back from his dreadful 16-point output in the Celtics’ dreadful loss to the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night by leading all scorers against the Magic with 30 points on 12-for-21 shooting. The Celtics superstar had six rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block in the win.

Jennings made headlines when he called Tatum the “softest Celtics superstar ever” during a segment on the “Gil’s Arena” podcast and then doubled down on his perception of the 2024 NBA champion after Tatum’s trainer fired off a response.

Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla used a unique strategy to help his players overcome the outside noise: He used the history of criticism of an unnamed NBA great throughout his career.