The Boston Celtics took down the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night, picking up a 118-106 victory to wrap up their four-game Western Conference road trip. Kristaps Porzingis led the charge on offense, but Jayson Tatum was the team’s leading scorer and helped close out the game in the final moments.
Nikola Jokic was out for Denver, leaving Jamal Murray to carry the load. But Boston chose to throw multiple bodies at Murray, so it was Russell Westbrook who acted as the Nuggets’ lead offensive initiator for most of the game. He and Tatum were even talking some trash throughout the game.
And Tatum spoke about it after the game.
Jayson Tatum explains trash talk with Russell Westbrook
Tatum, who isn’t usually the type to talk trash opponents, said that it was fun against the Nuggets because of his friendship with Westbrook, which makes a ton of sense.
“Love Russ to death,” Tatum said via Brian Robb of MassLive. “I can’t say enough good things about him, what he’s meant to the game, the NBA. One of the best players to ever play. How he’s inspired so many kids, I was in high school watching Russ when he first got to the league.
“To build a relationship with him, he’s been the same competitor since my rookie year to now. You just cherish those moments when you play against legends because it’s something you’ll always be able to remember.”
On top of giving his reasoning for trash-talking with Westbrook, Tatum showed love to the future Hall-of-Famer.
“Love Russ to death,” Tatum said. “I can’t say enough good things about him, what he’s meant to the game, the NBA. One of the best players to ever play. How he’s inspired so many kids, I was in high school watching Russ when he first got to the league.
“To build a relationship with him, he’s been the same competitor since my rookie year to now. You just cherish those moments when you play against legends because it’s something you’ll always be able to remember.”
Westbrook played well against the Celtics on Tuesday. He finished the game with 26 points, nine rebounds, and six assists while shooting 9-of-18 from the field and 4-of-9 from behind the three-point line.
Tatum, on the other hand, posted 29 points, four rebounds, and six assists while shooting 11-of-23 from the floor and 1-of-9 from beyond the arc.
Though the Celtics superstar doesn’t usually talk smack with other players, when they are his friends, it makes it fun.
