Green Wave

As humans, it&rsquo;s in our nature to simplify topics to help enhance our perceived understanding of them. Simply put, we like putting things in boxes.&nbsp;
For Jayson Tatum, the box he&rsquo;s long been secluded to is "bucket-getter."
In some respects, this is a noble designation, considering the essence of the sport is to, how you say, get buckets. However, the taxonomy has a limiting quality that comes with it. You see, the impact of players that fall under this archetype typically caps off in the low-end All-Star territory &mdash; a far cry from Tatum&rsquo;s megastar ambitions.&nbsp;
So, to burst through this glass ceiling, Tatum has become something else. He&rsquo;s become someone else (The <a href="https://youtu.be/7wnMZRs1c34" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Green Arrow?</a>).&nbsp;
He&rsquo;s transformed himself into a generous facilitator and a stalwart defender, and that maturation was never more apparent than in the role he played in the Celtics 4-0' conquest of the Brooklyn Nets.&nbsp;
Playmaking&nbsp;
His passing development is best cataloged through the lens of Ben Taylor&rsquo;s <a href="https://backpicks.com/2018/07/15/nba-passer-ratings-since-1978/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Passer Rating</a> (a 1-to-10 measure of a players passing ability) and <a href="https://backpicks.com/metrics/box-creation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Box Creation</a> (an estimate of open shots created for teammates per 100 possessions) metrics.&nbsp;
Passing/Playmaking Stats By Year 
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<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 23.1456%;">Jayson Tatum</td>
<td style="width: 12.3873%;">
'17-18 
</td>
<td style="width: 12.2953%;">
'18-19 
</td>
<td style="width: 12.4109%;">
'19-20 
</td>
<td style="width: 12.3163%;">
'20-21 
</td>
<td style="width: 13.7372%;">
'21-22 
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 23.1456%;">
Passer Rating*
</td>
<td style="width: 12.3873%;">
2.6
</td>
<td style="width: 12.2953%;">
3.7
</td>
<td style="width: 12.4109%;">
4.2
</td>
<td style="width: 12.3163%;">
5.0
</td>
<td style="width: 13.7372%;">
5.6
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 23.1456%;">
Box Creation*
</td>
<td style="width: 12.3873%;">
2.3
</td>
<td style="width: 12.2953%;">
3.1
</td>
<td style="width: 12.4109%;">
5.9
</td>
<td style="width: 12.3163%;">
8.2
</td>
<td style="width: 13.7372%;">
9.1
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
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*Data Provided by Backpicks
As you can see, Tatum began his career as a horrid passer (for reference: Moses Malone once penned a 2.6 Passer Rating). Nowadays, his playmaking numbers are some of the best in the league, as he finished the 2021-22 season ranking in the 90th percentile in Box Creation.
We've seen a similar growth curve from other athletic forwards who began their All-Star reigns as pure scorers, and then, graduated into MVP candidates by improving their passing.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Kawhi Leonard had a Passer Rating of 2.9 during his rookie season and went on to finish in the top-20 in the stat in 2019-20 (6.9), tying the Point God himself, Chris Paul.
Tatum&rsquo;s Celtic progenitor, Paul Pierce, began his career with a Box Creation output of 1.7, only to finish in the 92nd percentile in creation in 2015-16 (once again tying Paul!).
(Keep in mind that Leonard and Pierce were both 28 when they made their playmaking peaks; Tatum just turned 24.)
A huge part of Tatum&rsquo;s synthesis as a passer and playmaker can be credited to his strength. The Nets often tried to load up on Tatum in a fashion similar to the way the Celtics did so with Durant. And yet, unlike Durant &mdash; who was <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-celtics-game-1-defense-on-kevin-durant-showcased-their-greatness" target="_blank" rel="noopener">battered into a barrage of contested jumpers</a> &mdash; Tatum continuously found ways to knife his way into the eye of the storm. During the series, Tatum took an average of 8.5 shots at the rim per game, while Durant managed a mere 1.7 (per Dunks &amp; Threes).
Tatum wasn&rsquo;t converting on these looks at his usual rate, but his ability to consistently get two feet into the defense's place of worship forced the Nets to <a href="https://cleaningtheglass.com/how-do-nba-defensive-rotations-work/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sink</a> in on his drives, and that shift empowered Tatum to spray passes out to his loosely guarded contemporaries.
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The immediacy with which he relieves himself from custody of the rock is another key to his progress in the playmaking department. Last season, when Boston played the Nets (albeit without Jaylen Brown), Tatum was handling the ball for <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/players/touches/?Season=2020-21&amp;SeasonType=Playoffs&amp;CF=PLAYER_NAME*E*Tatum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">4.48</a> seconds, and he took <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/players/touches/?Season=2020-21&amp;SeasonType=Playoffs&amp;CF=PLAYER_NAME*E*Tatum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">3.40</a> dribbles during those possessions. This time around, he only held the ball for <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/players/touches/?Season=2021-22&amp;SeasonType=Playoffs&amp;CF=PLAYER_NAME*E*Tatum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">4.06</a> seconds and produced only <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/players/touches/?Season=2021-22&amp;SeasonType=Playoffs&amp;CF=PLAYER_NAME*E*Tatum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2.95</a> dribbles per touch.&nbsp;
This change in time may not seem significant, but a half-second here and half-dribble there can be the difference in a few inches of airspace for his teammate. And like Tony D&rsquo;Amato said in Any Given Sunday, "Life&rsquo;s a game of inches, g**damn it!"
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Tatum is making decisions swifter and more precisely than ever before, and it shows in his postseason Box Creation score of 12.6 (third among postseason participants).&nbsp;
Defense
Sticking with our previous comparisons, Pierce and Leonard both authored two No. 1 ranked defenses with the franchises that drafted them.
(Pierce did it behind the watchful eye of Kevin Garnett in 2007-08 and 2011-12, while Leonard was the keystone to an impenetrable wall of defensive superiority from <a href="https://cleaningtheglass.com/stats/team/27/team#tab-four_factors" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2015-17</a>.)
This iteration of the Celtics just <a href="https://cleaningtheglass.com/stats/team/2/team#tab-four_factors" target="_blank" rel="noopener">completed this feat</a> for the second time since Tatum started tending to the TD Garden in 2017-18, and one could reasonably argue that he may have been the third-best guardian on a unit with two potential <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/defensive-awards-and-a-celebration-of-defense" target="_blank" rel="noopener">All-NBA defenders</a>.
Like Pierce and Leonard, Tatum relies on a tantalizing blend of strength and length to bother players of all shapes and sizes. Against the Nets, Tatum forced over&nbsp;2 turnovers per 75 possessions (that includes steals, blocks and charges).&nbsp;
As for Durant, Tatum not only used his aforementioned strength to bully his frailer adversary around on the perimeter, but he also leveraged his length to meet KD&rsquo;s shot at its zenith in a manner we haven&rsquo;t seen since Giannis Antetokoumpo.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Other than Giannis and Tatum, who else has the ability to block a Kevin Durant jumper at its apex? <a href="https://t.co/mAmHHqkpiH">pic.twitter.com/mAmHHqkpiH</a>
&mdash; Mat Issa (@matissa15) <a href="https://twitter.com/matissa15/status/1519726455948820481?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 28, 2022</a></blockquote>

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And while <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/how-to-slow-down-kevin-durant-let-the-reaper-reap" target="_blank" rel="noopener">slowing Durant</a> has been a team-wide endeavor (every player that played significant minutes shadowed him at one point or another), Tatum&rsquo;s individual work is nothing to scoff at.&nbsp;
In over 30 minutes of guarding him, Tatum held Durant to 3 of 18 shooting in a performance that <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrD5hCP8X6s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">garnered comparison</a> to the containment job Pierce executed on LeBron James in 2008. For the record, Leonard also has a superstar stymie on his resume &mdash; that being his famous walling off of Giannis in 2019.
James, Antetokounmpo and Durant experienced significant decreases in volume and efficiency when they went up against this troika of star wings.
Superstar Shutdown Performances
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<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 22.7658%;">
Player Matchup (Year)
</td>
<td style="width: 10.5775%;">
TS%*
</td>
<td style="width: 25.4747%;">
Dif. from Regular Season*
</td>
<td style="width: 10.2303%;">
PPG
</td>
<td style="width: 25.7298%;">
Dif. from Regular Season*
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 22.7658%;">
James (2008)
</td>
<td style="width: 10.5775%;">
48.0%
</td>
<td style="width: 25.4747%;">
-8.8%
</td>
<td style="width: 10.2303%;">
26.7
</td>
<td style="width: 25.7298%;">
-3.3
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 22.7658%;">
Antetokounmpo (2019)
</td>
<td style="width: 10.5775%;">
51.8%
</td>
<td style="width: 25.4747%;">
-12.6%
</td>
<td style="width: 10.2303%;">
22.7
</td>
<td style="width: 25.7298%;">
-5.0
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 22.7658%;">
Durant (2022)
</td>
<td style="width: 10.5775%;">
52.6%
</td>
<td style="width: 25.4747%;">
-10.8%
</td>
<td style="width: 10.2303%;">
26.3
</td>
<td style="width: 25.7298%;">
-3.6
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
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*Data Provided by Basketball Reference
It&rsquo;s also worth noting that Pierce and Leonard both captured NBA titles during the postseasons they administered their signature shutdown performances in.
Overall, Tatum&rsquo;s recent stretch of play pushes him from bucket-getting All-Star to a borderline top-10 player in the NBA. And future improvements around the margins could lead to Tatum ascending into the all-time pantheon of two-way forwards &mdash; right next to Pierce and Leonard.
His growth thus far is best summarized in a Game 4 quote from <a href="https://twitter.com/realStanVG/status/1518569656470093827?s=20&amp;t=pp4NUrT5Mmx_-_htG8l8VQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter&rsquo;s favorite son</a>, Stan Van Gundy:&nbsp;
&ldquo;Tatum, at the end of last year, was thought of in this league as a great scorer. Now, he is a great player, and it is because he has become an outstanding defender and a willing &mdash; and very good &mdash; playmaker.&rdquo;
Well said, Stan. Well said.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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Mat Issa writes on how Jayson Tatum's playmaking and defense have reminded him of two other great wing players on both ends.

Jayson Tatum is much more than just a bucket-getter

Night after night, NBA fans are spoiled by watching these talented, skilled and athletic players grace the court, rewrite the record-books, and put their greatness on display.
That is why this 75th season should not only be a season of appreciation, but one of celebration.
A celebration of how the game has evolved, with past greats giving current stars their well-deserved bouquet of flowers and watching in awe of their envelope-pushing feats and accomplishments. Celebrating those next in line and being optimistically bullish on where they will carry the league next.
The opening weeks of the NBA season did not disappoint, so here are six aspects that have stood out so far.
The Not-So-Curious Case of James Harden
The Brooklyn Nets as a collective group have struggled in the early goings of the season. Their 2-3 record isn&rsquo;t what&rsquo;s been expected of them at all. In these five games, despite his 7.0 rebounds and 8.0 assists per game, James Harden is averaging just 16.6 points per game with 35.9/33.3/93.3 shooting splits. Even with the season being only two weeks old, there is a notion out there that Harden&rsquo;s struggles are &mdash; or should be &mdash; cause for concern. (Our Nekias Duncan recently did a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/why-isnt-james-harden-getting-to-the-free-throw-line" target="_blank" rel="noopener">deep dive on The Beard's early offensive slump</a>.)
Nets head coach Steve Nash refutes that, and affirms his confidence in Harden: &ldquo;He&rsquo;s still an excellent player even if he&rsquo;s not at peak form and we still believe in him. And he will get there in the next few weeks."
After the Nets&rsquo; 106-93 loss to the Miami Heat, Harden insinuated that he isn&rsquo;t fully recovered from his hamstring injury.
"As much as I want to get back to 30 and 40 points, I can&rsquo;t do that. As much as I want to, as much as I would love to. I didn&rsquo;t have any opportunities to play pickup. It was all rehab,&rdquo; Harden said.
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Harden is the type of player who plays himself into shape. If he wasn&rsquo;t 100% healed from the hamstring injury, he couldn&rsquo;t participate in runs, so the reasoning here is plausible. Plus, it&rsquo;s also fair to say that Harden is having to, once again, adjust his game. Last season, Harden began to facilitate more to accommodate Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, and provided an extra scoring punch when needed. While Harden won&rsquo;t drop 30 to 40 points on a consistent basis, he will have to pick and choose his moments between deferring and being aggressive in order for the Nets to succeed.
Live From Buzz City
The Charlotte Hornets are a fun watch, but that&rsquo;s not all they are. At 4-1, Charlotte is off to its best start in franchise history. Last Sunday's upset over the Brooklyn Nets served as the perfect example of what this team is trying to be this season &mdash; an athletic, up-tempo and gritty team with the potential to slide into the playoffs. (Our Spencer Davies <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/pj-washington-buying-into-being-hornets-super-sub-5-man" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sat down with PJ Washington</a> to discuss the team's start.)
The Hornets won that game with grit and tenacity on both sides of the ball. Kevin Durant was going to score and impact the game regardless. The Hornets just limited everyone else defensively, stuck with ball movement and made quality shots.
Again, this is a very athletic squad with chemistry that&rsquo;s getting stronger by the game. While five contests is a small sample size, it doesn&rsquo;t make what the Hornets are doing any less impressive. What&rsquo;s interesting to monitor as the season progresses is how this chemistry is tested. &nbsp;Can the Hornets keep the same camaraderie, bond and energy regardless of the record? Can they find multiple ways to win and carry that into a playoff berth instead of a play-in? We'll see if the League Pass darlings have it in them.
Leading By Example?
To further complicate matters in Philadelphia, the Sixers&rsquo; Joel Embiid is having a slow start in the earlygoing of the season. His struggles should be attributed to a right knee injury he sustained in the season opener-against the New Orleans Pelicans. In Tuesday&rsquo;s loss to the New York Knicks, Embiid was limited to 14 points on 2-of-7 from the field. According to ESPN&rsquo;s Ramona Shelburne, Embiid is playing through pain for a reason. He wants the establish leadership &mdash; on the floor and off of it.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s playing because Ben Simmons is not playing and they need one of them on the court. He wants to show leadership at this moment, because as you say, you don&rsquo;t want to fall behind where to where you cannot come back,&rdquo; Shelburne said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/ramonashelburne?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ramonashelburne</a> on Joel Embiid playing through injuries (via NBA Today). "He told me after this game in New Orleans, he couldn't walk for two days." 😳 (via NBA Today) <a href="https://t.co/yuq6fdbfDN">pic.twitter.com/yuq6fdbfDN</a>
&mdash; ESPN (@espn) <a href="https://twitter.com/espn/status/1453444356149596167?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 27, 2021</a></blockquote>

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While Embiid&rsquo;s reasoning for playing through his pain is admirable and noble, it may be best for him to sit a few games to give his knee a chance to heal. It&rsquo;s only the opening weeks of a new season, five games out of 82. An injured Embiid being out there wouldn&rsquo;t make matters any better for an embattled Sixers team.
Chef Board-ar-dee
What Stephen Curry does on the court shouldn&rsquo;t surprise anyone anymore. But still, he somehow manages to surprise and continues to push the limits of what&rsquo;s possible on the floor. Despite poor shooting percentages for his standards (43% from the field, 40% from three), Curry is averaging 30.4 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game. Grabbing eight boards a night &mdash; which includes the 10-rebound outings he had to start the season against the Los Angeles Lakers and L.A. Clippers &mdash; has been a surprise that was very unexpected. When it comes to the impact that Curry&rsquo;s rebounding has on the Warriors, it can be looked at as a good or a bad thing.
On one hand, it is well known that Golden State is a small team, and rebounding is an area of concern and point of emphasis. It will take an all-hands-and-bodies-on-deck approach for the team to fight for control of the glass, and seeing that Curry is hustling for boards and doing his part is encouraging. On the other hand, a 6-foot-3 point guard shouldn&rsquo;t be leading the team in rebounds. Others will have to put forth more of an effort on the glass. As a collective unit, however, the Warriors have been rebounding well enough to contribute to their 4-1 record.
The Bulls&rsquo; Market?
For the first time since the Michael Jordan era, the Chicago Bulls began the season undefeated. That was, of course, before losing to the New York Knicks at home on Thursday night. The caveat to this rapid start is that Chicago opened the season with a very soft schedule, playing the Detroit Pistons twice, the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans. However, the schedule does not negate the admirable and noteworthy job the team has done so far.
Right now, the Bulls are third in team plus-minus (+7.8), fourth in defensive rating (100.2) and 10th in assists per game (24.6). The additions of Lonzo Ball, DeMar DeRozan, and Alex Caruso have been proven to be solid, as all three have fit right in. Each player&rsquo;s skill set complements the other, and just like the Hornets, their chemistry and cohesiveness is growing with every game. The progression of this team, regardless of wins and losses, will be interesting to watch as the season goes on.
Let Them Play
The new rules to limit non-basketball moves used to draw fouls, for the most part, have been a welcome change to the game. While the rules neutralized the flopping, it also empowers defenses in other ways. They can be more physical, bumping guys off the perimeter and wearing them down by getting in their jerseys a bit. It also forces those who once benefited from what was neutralized to ball out and open up their bags a bit. What I&rsquo;m looking forward to seeing is the adjustments offenses will make in response throughout the season, and to see how diverse the tools in the arsenal of skills are &mdash; especially with the ones that have been struggling to begin the season. I&rsquo;d like to see how they will adjust.

Jannelle Moore shares six takeaways from the opening weeks of the NBA season.

6 observations from the opening weeks of NBA action

Spencer Davies talks to Marvin Williams Sr. about his new book and Marvin Williams Jr.'s entire career (from a father's vantage point).

Nobal