GET UP | Jay Williams makes a bold prediction for NBA Finals: Celtics vs. Mavericks key to title?

GET UP | Jay Williams makes a bold prediction for NBA Finals: Celtics vs. Mavericks key to title?

bottom of the hour we are 2 days from game one of the NBA finals and so let’s do an all finals edition of what if here we go Monica first one what if Jason Tatum wins finals MVP then what man he will be quieting all of the noise sh just put all the respect on his name that he would deserve he answers the call he moves into the hierarchy of Celtics great with such a prideful organization um it would mean obviously that he’s efficiently scoring the basketball and it’s probably going to mean that he’s had a defensive mark on the series given the Firepower on the other side Alan same question yeah I completely agree it’s we can’t say a damn thing about him anymore because he’s accomplished everything that we have set as far as a standard goes for him that is the beginning of it but of course what we’ll do now is wonder how many more championships the Celtics can win and see if he can do it actually I’m going to Matt it was our our new director today I’m going to do something that for the first time that you’ve been on our show I’m stopping our segment and I want to get into this a little bit because we touched on this earlier and I think it is an interesting question because what happens if he wins Finals MVP obviously hoopla celebration that’s easy what happens if they win in he doesn’t we touched on that earlier and obviously it’s been a topic on a lot of talk shows and it just occurred to me how I would I think we should approach this Jason Tatum is competing with two different collections of people he’s competing with the current NBA players which can be the only thing on his mind so if they win the championship and he is isn’t the best player then that’s fine for him I’m sure he’ll be just as happy as he would be otherwise he he he’ll be one of the best players in the league as he continues to be first team all NBA and that’ll be great however what I think is at stake for him if he does win finals MVP is where it would put him in the competition with the ghosts that he also chases which is to say when you are as good as he is when you are as highly touted as he was coming out of Duke and you put that Jersey on everyone immediately says oh can he be the next bird can he be the next havav can he be the next Russell Koozie you know Paul Pierce whoever it is you want to mention if he wins Finals MVP then I think that enters that conversation because that’s what those guys were those guys won championships and were the definitive reason their teams won championships and if you’re going to be one of the great Celtics if we’re going to put you in a in a category with Larry Bird someday then you’re going to have to have that trophy as well that that I think is a reasonable way of distinguishing between his being the MVP and not you look to me like you’re not buying it no I I it’s just we skipped a bunch of chapters but I I get going what chapter did we skip went right to the back of the book The chapter well obviously we’re assuming that they win but to I think a Finals MVP and a single Championship into the lore of Celtics r i mean he joins Paul Pierce right yeah I was like Larry Bird Kevin Garnett stop like like when you talk about bird and hav and Russell like that’s a whole other world this is that these are guys that won multiples they were bird was there almost every year this is for Tatum it’s just getting to this point now at least lets him in the room with the alltime great don’t get me wrong in the same way that I’m not saying Anthony Edwards today is comparable to Michael Jordan what I’m saying is that would it would legitimize Jason Tatum as being could he become one of the true Celtic great okay so it starts a new conversation if you’re going to do a Mount Rushmore of alltime great Celtic he’s not on it he’s not he’s not that close to being on it if you win a a championship and a Finals MVP and you put up the numbers this guy sometimes the numbers he puts up are diminished go find me the seasons that John havich that had that compare to this go find me the seasons Larry Bird had that compared to the numbers he’s putting up right now look Larry Bird is one of the 10 greatest players that ever lived havich is probably the most underappreciated Immortal in the history of the league Jason Tatum is that level of good he just doesn’t have any of the Hardware that legitimizes all of it and what I’m saying is if he wins the championship lar you know how many finals MVPs Larry Bird won too it’s not like he won 10 he won two he won three championships and was the MVP of two of them Cedric Maxwell was the MVP of the other I’m not saying this would make him Larry Bird I’m saying it would legitimize that that projection for his career which I feel like has been there since the moment he put that uniform on so as we’re waiting for the finals we tie in all of the things that we’ve talked about to get to this moment I think you’re right greeny in that right he’s 26 years old he would be on track to potentially earn another Finals MVP and bring the Celtics another championship but also as we look down the stretch of the last six seasons we’re in a place in the NBA in terms of parody and dominance we had this conversation do we believe that there’s another Dynasty out there right and so I think you got to attach the two of those because they could have a really great year and Jason Tatum could answer all of the calls that people have or all of the questions that people have had about him and it may not still equal what you know what I mean yeah I’m going to get neck in here but hembo I’m giving you another assignment he already got the last one done I’m giving you another one how many Celtics have were were um on the all NBA first team more than three times because the number is not going to be as big as you think it is that that is a hard thing to do we di we talk Jason D well he’s been First Team all NBA three years no no hold on he’s been First Team all NBA three times he’s 26 years old that is an extraordinary start to a career and because his team have been so good and he got so good quickly we sometimes act like he has underachieved relative to his accomplishments Nick get in here yeah I think the dynasty question is what matters and I think uh Monica’s right that it seems like we’re in an era where there aren’t very many dynasties in basketball but if there is going to be one it’s going to be the Celtics organization that is shown the ability to remake A Winner after winner and then make tweaks to make teams that are really good even better and then they’re also in an East that does not show uh any promise to be any legitimate competitors outside of the Celtics so I think that that makes this finals for Jason Tatum like a pivotal point in like NBA history if they win this Championship then there there’s no conversation of making more tweets there no conversation of breaking up the roster there’s conversation of how many more can they win and we know that Brad Stevens and Joe Missoula is going to continue to get better as a coach but we know that Brad Stevens is going to be able to put the right pieces around them going forward so I do think this this finals is one of the most interesting and exciting NBA Finals we had in a long time because all that’s on the line and we haven’t even talked about what could happen if Luca happens to win a championship well that’s the point one of these two guys could lay claim to this being their league at least for the moment and if if if Luca dominates and they win the championship and he’s the MVP then we have that conversation if Tatum dominates and they win the MVP then we have that conversation but this does go into it see people will say well what difference does it make if you’re the finals MVP in the in the moment maybe not that much but that guy hmbo and I over there we write books about sports history when you go back and write about this stuff when context has disappear has dissipated if Michael Jordan had been the MVP of three of the six Championship Finals that they won we would look at it differently he was the finals MVP in all six of their titles that’s a huge part of the reason that he is well he’s the greatest player of all time at least in my opinion that stuff does matter when we start putting people into historical perspective yeah and I think what Monica said and why like what you’re saying isn’t crazy but it’s just very premature he still has to win this one like let’s start here and we don’t know and I don’t believe they’re going to win this one I don’t think they’re going to I think Dallas is winning this we also have to though when it comes to Celtic history let’s remind ourselves they’ve had one title in almost 40 years let’s also point that part out they haven’t had a lot of winning when it comes to championships like we were used to when Larry Bird and Bill Russell were the best players on that team so let’s start there let’s get that and then we can move forward with that conversation of what’s next and there’s embo so you’re talking about four Celtics in history and and and and the and the people of Bob Koozie Larry Bird John hav and Bill Charan you’re talking about four the greatest players Charan obviously is a product of a generation well so is Koozie they played so long ago that most many NBA fans of the moment may not know who they are by the way you may be saying where’s Bill Russell Will Chamberlain was on all those first team Wall NBA and they went center right they didn’t do it like that back in those days when it wasn’t position l so what I’m trying to say is clearly Russell would belong in the conversation of Greater Celtics than candidly than anyone all I’m saying is to to to what you just said yes he has to win it for for this conversation to take effect he he has to win it he has to be the finals MVP that’s the premise that I’m setting up if he does that then he we’re not even talking about well is he better than Luca is he better than that I think we’re now talking about is he going to make it run at being one of these Celtic Immortals one of the alltime great these are royalty in the history of and he’s a draft pick so he’s a homegrown Celtic this is all important to this because you know if you think about the Garnett when they won the championship that team was built through trades that was one of the great trades you make instant Championship so he wasn’t homegrown although of course they do claim him now but because he’s drafted much like the guys before him including of course Larry Bird then you become a little bit more of of a legacy kind of player and what you’d expect also once he signs this $330 million contract he will play his whole career with the Celtics which I also think is important that that zero going up in the rafters right going up in the rafters especially you put a ring on your finger and carry that Finals MVP let me try and put this a different way his numbers if you just put up his numbers early in his career with no other context if you took winning and everything else they will compare favorably to the numbers of practically any player who ever wore that uniform and what I’m saying is the reason they are to some degree invalidated by so much of the of the conversational public is because he doesn’t have the two things we’re talking about which is a championship and a Finals MVP if he wins the title and he’s the best player and the reason they do it then I think everything about his career looks different I I agree with you at 26 years old and I think think this is sort of the heavy as the head that wears the crown the burden of being a Celtic right you’re right in isolation if we looked at those numbers you’d be like bet Jason Tatum three- time all NBA that’s fantastic but because they have not gotten over the hump and because frankly Grinny they’ve been close they’ve tantalized their fan base they’ve been really close and just not been able to get J would you prefer to have him or Luca donic they’re both about the same age going forward for the rest to build your franchise with which player are we going to break right now do we have right now it’s a terrible question Dominique final word Nick go ahead it’s not a hard question to answer it’s a tough question no I mean I think the obvious answer to that question is Luca but I think the most important thing of this conversation is that there’s no team better positioned than the Celtics to win if they win this year to win a few in a row and then Jason Tatum gets those opportunities at multiple championships multiple finals MVPs and then he does enter into that conversation with those Celtics alltime greats and we were talking about greatest trades Of All Times Han just reminded me of one of those great cherries aren’t Tatum and brown both a result of the the trade with the Nets to get rid of those agent Superstars that might be one of the greatest of all time considering what they’ve put together right now the Celtics traded at stake now we’ve been talking about finals MVPs so the question is a perfect one who’s the youngest Celtic ever to win Finals MVP I will note the award began in 1969 it’s named for Bill Russell they had won by this time 11 of their 17 champions chips so of the six that have have come since then who was the youngest MVP I believe you mentioned him Cornbread Maxwell the Larry Bird won two of them yes JoJo white early 70s four they all got there but the answer is Cedric Maxwell who was 25 years old in 1981 be honest would you I did just mention him without realizing going to be the question would you have thought of him you brought him up and I know he had to have been very early in his career I think it was like his second season maybe even it was bird second season it yeah but that’s what made me think of it and so I went with it so credit greeny for that I did I did not I did not mean to give that one away it is Cedric Maxwell Larry Bird won his two when he was 27 and 29 years old JoJo white in 76 also 29 years old Paul Pierce was the MVP the most recent Championship they won who will be the MVP if the Celtics win it this time we’ll have to wait and see Kyrie Irving meanwhile of course is on the other side he was a Celtic for a short period of time that did not go well and this week he was addressing that time and facing his former team last time in Boston I don’t think that was the best uh you not not this regular season but when we played in the playoffs and everyone saw me flip off the birds and kind of lose my a little bit that wasn’t a great reflection of who I am I’m built for these moments uh to be able to handle circumstances like that uh and I’ve been able to grow since then you know it’s just fascinating because that is such the right thing to say because so many people in that circumstance might not will will would deflect the question or go in any number of different directions rather than taking it on headon as he just did Dominique he’s look you and I have had a million conversations about Kyrie Irving and almost none of them have involved how brilliant a basketball player he is because there’s just been so much other stuff what are you seeing in him and all of this right now yeah I mean this run has done a lot to kind of put deodorant on that Brooklyn situation and I think there’s some parts of that that I don’t think anyone is going to forget and it’s fine that they don’t forget it however the way that he’s been playing on the floor I think has been exceptional and this though it is Luca’s run this is Luca’s team this is going to make us kind of change the way we talk about his career cuz it felt like the final chapter of his career was going to be kind of a sad disappointing one and it’s seems like he’s a different person I don’t know what caused that change but the change seems genuine and it seems permanent which it’s okay for us to be excited about it’s okay for us to celebrate without um necessarily completely forgetting the things that uh happened in Brooklyn what do you think Monica I would agree with that and I think this is just a reminder that this journey that athletes are on is not just about what they do on their court or field or whatever their um profession takes them like they are also growing as we all are growing as people and you have the opportunity to be better to improve to make basketball the primary thing again in the case of Kyrie Irving and I think again he’s been a part of building a culture in that Dallas Mavericks locker room that is accountable that is rooting for one another that is competing at the highest level as they attempt to win a final Mind Body Spirit right that’s important I I love Nick bringing up the winning is the best deodorant line because that’s really what it is it takes all the stink away but you also know what was created there in Dallas giving credit to Mark cubin giving credit to Nico Harrison also to Jason kid because they also are creating like this place for Kyrie to get back to basketball he is idolized Jason kid for years since he was a kid grow growing up a Nets fan and Jason kid doing things with the Nets that nobody’s ever done taking him to two finals right you have that you have God sham God as an assistant coach you know Monica you’ve talked to him he has known Kyrie when he was a little kid his father knew God sham God who was a New York City basketball legend him being on that staff another trustworthy person to have there and Nico Harrison has known for many years as well so when he has that trust base it does allow him to be comfortable and get back to being the player that I think we all were to be by the way if you’re talking about perhaps immature decisions that he made when he left Cleveland to go to Boston it’s worth reminding everyone when he did that he was 25 years old by the in the context of sports sometimes we forget just how young a person you are when you I mean certainly to me 25 I mean I have children who are practically that age so my point is like you’re young and you’re making decisions and it is perfectly reasonable to accept as people grow that they are doing exactly that by the way you mentioned earlier this morning Dominique that the Mavericks winning the championship would be one of the most unexpected titles in recent memory we had hembo look it up and here it is and he came up with this almost immediately the last team that was a longer shot to win the championship than this team would have been uh or than this team would have been before this season began was Golden State it it’s so fun in the light of day how that looks now right they began a dynasty at that point Steve cerr was a never been a head coach of anything before Steph Curry was too small to be anything but just a great shooter was undersized and all of that and now all of a sudden now it looks ridiculous but in that in that time that was a longer shot before the season began than these Mavericks are what do you then possibly think about if the Mavericks can manage to get this done They just added those new guys at the trade deadline Luca obviously is still a guy that we debate over being the centerpiece foxy like there’s just man this season for the Mavs has been so special and that trade was huge shout out to legs always Nick yeah that was that was back when we thought jump Shooters couldn’t win championships but uh this I think I have uh uh been having a good time on this segment except I having a hard time not laughing because one of my friends just texted me and he said uh I bet you LeBron all those books on the bookshelf behind you and I’m embarrassed because it’s true I think I’ve read one or two of them start to finish all the rest of them three or four pages then you close them up and put them on your bookshelf and act like you read them things right a ver LeBron books LeBron oh no those books um now I forgotten what I was going to say oh um the the the Mavericks winning this Championship sorry is it the end of something or is it the beginning of something because this like the Celtics feel like they just were born this team got thrown together big trade here big trade there is this actually the of something yeah I’m not sure like unlike the books on Nick shelf I I don’t think this is a very deep one I think you can get it done with just opening it once and reading one page because you got to consider this might be forca his best chance when you consider the West has still Nicole yic and Denver Victor wanyama is coming and so is Anthony Edwards so if you spe e First Blood you have defeated an enemy back to the RO you have been defeated your tower has destroyed enemy ultimate an ally has been defeated our base is under attack you have defeated an enemy be an enemy has been defeated our base is under attack an enemy has been defeated an ally has been defeated an enemy has been defeated our base is under attack our our base is under attack an enemy has been defeated you have defeated an enemy you you have been defeated enemy double kill shut down kill trip your team has destroyed a tower Domina dou kill an enemy has been defeated you have been defeated legendary an ally has been defeated double kill triple

GET UP | Jay Williams makes a bold prediction for NBA Finals: Celtics vs. Mavericks key to title?