Jayson Tatum left Stephen A. ‘heartbroken’ after struggles in Celtics’ loss to Denver 💔 | First Take

Jayson Tatum left Stephen A. ‘heartbroken’ after struggles in Celtics’ loss to Denver 💔 | First Take

Big perk himself posted on x quote it comes down to MVP plays in games like this that’s the difference between the MVP and a guy just getting votes ouch here’s Chris STS porzingis on a tough loss to the Nuggets it could have went our way and we we’re having a completely different

And you’re saying oh you guys look like they have Denver’s number you know so it could go uh both ways and and uh um I like that we have this loss in in a regular season it stings we it has to sting uh um and and we have to learn and

We have to improve oh yeah no it was a uh another playoff atmosphere for sure as we talk pregame you you got to give the Celtic fans credit you know they uh they always come out strong um you know but you know what we say right they can

Take that L on the way out baby you heard him right there listen let’s get right to it Jan I’ll bring the first question on you especially considering Tatum fness with 15 points a five of 13 shooting was last night a blow the Tatum’s MVP

Case you know Stephen A I first want to address Kendrick Perkins uh that’s my big bro I’m sending him a lot of love okay but he has said over the entire course of the NBA season well my MVP vote is going to go to the best player

On the best team and so that would technically by the Numbers be Jason Tatum so for him to tweet that I’m like okay perk you got to tell us who your new MVP is there’s some inconsistency there there’s some inconsistency there absolutely so I had to call out now I

Okay this is an example when you go buy a lottery ticket do you feel bad when you don’t win not really because you know the odds of that are not necessarily in your favor I don’t think that people have truly bought in on this being Jason Tatum’s MVP year just

Because he is surrounded by a strong Supporting Cast this is a team that has taken steps forward as we’ve seen consistently over the course of 60 plus games this NBA season but what we want from Jason Tatum to have was that moment versus the defending champs because everyone knows that Boston is building

Towards an NBA championship they want Banner number 18 and they want Jason Tatum to lead the way instead you see a guy who struggled in the fourth quarter I think it was one for five I think in the fourth you see a guy that only shot

The ball 13 times in the game I mean Jaylen Brown I believe shot 29 times you want Jason tanum to be that guy because he has been that guy for this team when we started talking about this D Dynamic duel between Jaylen Brown and Jason Tatum we’re like okay who’s going to

Edge each other out and Tatum has done that the last two or three years he is number one on the food chain for Boston so when you go to this matchup versus the Denver Nuggets and have an opportunity to make a statement and you fall short yes it hurts his MVP case but

I do think that this is a case that not many people have shined a light on people see yic as an MVP uh candidate people see SGA Shay Gil just Alexander as a candidate people even said Luca people say Aunt before they say Jason Tatum so I think think the odds of him

Winning were never necessarily in his favor but we wanted those moments to prove that they’re going to be a championship team come uh June and we just got denied one of those great opportunities wello gum on National International women’s day I I mean I I don’t want to take this position because

I mean the the ladies are it’s what it’s all about especially today but I have to confess to you that um I’m very disappointed because you’re diluting the impact of First Take because the one person that has been shining light on Jason tat be in the league MVP is me

Okay and in light of his performance last night I have to say I’m a bit heartbroken because I think that he’s put it in grave Jeopardy it’s not a finish deal there’s still enough games to go for him to make amends but you’re talking about a guy averaging 27 28

Points per game in two losses to Denver this year against a reigning defending NBA champion a league MVP and a nicolea yic even though he’s not the president MVP that would be Joel embiid you’re talking about a Jason Tatum that’s averaged eight 18 and a half points on

38% shooting and in 23% from three-point range in the two losses they were 0 and two to the Denver Nuggets this year that is not a good thing Jaylen Brown shows up and drops 41 last night on 16 to 29 shooting very reminiscent of the NBA Finals when Jaylen Brown showed up but

Jason tayum was struggling okay so we have to take that into consideration here 29 shots Jason Tatum why did you only get 13 shots last night I’m wondering about that then we’ve got to take into account the fact that again it reminds folks of the kind of performance

We saw the NBA finals and you’re wondering what you’re going to do when you go up against the big teams in the west you’re 0 and2 against Denver this year you’re 0 And1 against OKC you’re one and one against the Minnesota Timberwolves I’m looking at it from that

Perspective and I’m saying that is not a good situation for a guy vying for his first League MVP candidate I’ve been big on Jason Tatum sh needing to be considered the leader for the MVP vote best player on the best team in the NBA

But the best team in the NBA is 0 and2 against the reigning defending NBA champions who by the way are top three seed in the Western Conference okay they’re vying for the number one spot in the Western Conference and against the Boston Celtics who are supposedly the best team the NBA champions are

Undefeated against them to me that is a blemish if you are Jason Tatum and looking for the nvp award Wendy because Jason Tatum’s MVP case is over it is not happening and I mean I I this has been a brutal brutal three days for an MVP case for Jason Tatum and

Three days in March doesn’t make the season the Finish to that game in Cleveland the other night really that whole fourth quarter and that finish that game very hard he comes into this game which was as high of a level of a regular season game as you’re going to

Find both teams fully healthy both teams rested jokic has got the gas pedal all the way down everybody is into this game Jaylen Brown came out with fire in his eyes from the opening tip you’ve got Michael Malone stomping up and down the sideline like it’s a game seven and you

Got Jason Tatum having as many turnovers as baskets no you can’t be the MVP and perform that way in these games and he’s had a number of disappointments in the clutch now they just had an 11 game win streak where he was great the game that he played on Sunday against the Warriors

Where he was playing Just killer interior basketball going in and out was as impressive a performance as I’ve seen as a team this year but this is where especially because he’s behind he was not in the top four of the last straw poll that Tim bontemps did from

The actual voters he needed an absolute dominant stretch run to to to to pull off this this move because fair or not people have held his playoff failures against him in this Framing and this has not helped I will say this I have said before Jason Tatum is in position to

Have one of the greatest summers in the history of the NBA he has got a great chance to win the championship he has got a great chance in the finals to to be the leader on the team and maybe win a finals MVP he will sign I can promise

You he’s already qualified for the supermax in July he will be offered a $300 million contract that will become the highest contract in the history of the NBA and I’m almost positive he will sign it and then he will go play for Team USA if he’s healthy and have a

Great chance to win the gold medal and what would be the highest competitive level tournament in the history of basketball at the international level it everything is there on the table for him but the MVP trophy isn’t going to be one of them he was already a long shot and

This week have cemented it I’m sorry well I but that’s the whole point I don’t think he should have been a long shot and that really really bothers me because I think that he and Shay gilis Alexander should have been one and two in the mix now I’m looking at yic in the

Two games against Boston this year 41 points 13 assist uh in in in the two games against Boston with porzingis and Horford as primary Defenders I got to pay attention to that and that just reminds us of the greatness of joic which Mark sareth AKA stink that used to

Work here that does radio in Denver text me at 6 o’clock this morning to remind me about okay thank you Mark but the point is is that You’ got people in Denver they’ve got a chip on their shoulders because they don’t think they’ve been mentioned enough they don’t

Think they’ve been respected enough they don’t think they’ve been appreciated enough and I think the thing that also hurts Tatum is that coming into this game it was treated like a championship game Denver was saying to themselves sh look we’re the reigning defending Champions we’ve been down this road we

Know what it takes we’re relevant we’re not prioritized to being a number one or a number two seed from October through February but now that March has arrived and April’s on the way here we come and they’ve elevated their level of play their level of focus and we see that and

We get that I’m just looking at joic and I’m saying this brother is is is putting the world don’t notice here I come again and if you’re Tatum you had to answer that call last night and you didn’t and that’s what bothers me Shan yeah and I

Think that you said the word it’s always been and that’s what I was alluding to with like the lottery winning the lottery it’s always been a long shot for Jason Tatum I mean prior to embiid going down we had embiid as a favorite then afterward now it goes to yic and then

We’re talking about the west and SGA and then you have to put you know other people into those categories before we mentioned Jason Tatum I was right there with you I’ve been following I love Stephen A I love First Take I love all the energy in the mornings and I’ve been

Right there with you saying why aren’t we talking about the team that is rolling right why aren’t we talking about Jason Tatum leading this team taking less shots but it seems like it’s working better it’s doing more for the Celtics but Brian is actually you know absolutely correct this was a rough

Swing for the Celtics in the way that if he was going to make up some ground this was a ripe opportunity but it’s always felt unfortunately like a long shot for the MVP but I do think the intention over the entire course of the season has not necessarily been Jason Tatum MVP

It’s like we have to get to the NBA finals we have to win a championship that’s where Boston’s energy has been constructed more so than the individual success of Jason Tatum

Jayson Tatum left Stephen A. ‘heartbroken’ after struggles in Celtics’ loss to Denver 💔 | First Take
Stephen A. Smith, Brian Windhorst and Chiney Ogwumike react to the Boston Celtics’ loss to the Denver Nuggets last night and debate whether this blew Jayson Tatum’s MVP case.
#firsttake #nba #espn

0:00 Perk on Jayson Tatum
1:00 Was last night a blow for Tatum’s MVP case?
3:30 Jayson Tatum left me heartbroken – Stephen A.
5:26 Jayson Tatum’s MVP case is OVER! – Brian Windhorst
8:20 Why the Celtics’ loss hurt Tatum’s MVP case

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