JUST IN: FANS WHERE HAPPY AS Angel Reese LEGEND BILL DINEEN WAS MADE THE NEW…

JUST IN: FANS WHERE HAPPY AS Angel Reese LEGEND BILL DINEEN WAS MADE THE NEW…

Becoming MVP is one of Jayson Tatum’s career goals, but leading the Celtics to an NBA championship is higher on his list, writes Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Tatum said at All-Star Weekend that he believes voters will look at him differently based on his poor performance in the 2022 Finals, Washburn adds. Despite averaging 21.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 7.0 assists in the series, Tatum shot just 31% from 2-point range and struggled to get layups against Andrew Wiggins.”Of course you want to win these things,” Tatum said. . . Reporters last weekend in Indianapolis. “But you can’t prioritize playing the right way and doing the things you have to do to make your team basically the best team in the league and have a chance to win a championship. Would I like to win? Yes. But obviously losing the Finals two years ago affects how people think of me now, so I think I can afford to make up.”Tatum’s MVP case is bolstered by the dominance of the Celtics, who beat their eighth consecutive match. live game on Saturday in New York. Boston has the league’s best record, but its roster is so talented that Tatum doesn’t need to carry the team, which often limits the stats voters tend to look at when casting their votes. Coach Joe Mazzulla punted after Tatum’s 19-point performance against the Knicks.”I thought Jayson had a nice basketball performance today that gets overlooked and doesn’t go into the most valuable category,” Mazzulla said. “But his ability to control the game with his rush-and-roll speed and pick-and-roll passes; defensively, he put himself on (Jalen) Brunson. And being able to take two-on-ones (double teams) and create for others was great.”More on the Celtics:Kristaps Porzingis, one of Boston’s biggest acquisitions last summer, credits the front office for that. . bold moves in assembling the current roster, according to MassLive’s Souichi Terada. “When the opportunity came up, I said, at least for me, it’s going to work out 100 percent,” Porzingis said. “Or we’ll figure it out sooner rather than later. And it just worked right away because it fit my career and Jrue’s (vacation). … So all in all, great players, but also great people,” MassLive’s Brian Robb said , “team. bonding is very easy.”Eight games out of first place in the Eastern Conference, Mazzulla has a chance to rest players the rest of the season to keep them fresh for the playoffs. That, he adds, is a luxury for a team that has exhausted itself behind the seed in recent years.Senior basketball operations consultant Jeff Van Gundy has stayed out of the spotlight but has been a welcome addition to the Celtics’ leadership. To Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. “One of the best things about him is he’s just a great listener,” Mazzulla said. “So you don’t realize how long he’s been in the NBA. You don’t realize what playoff streak he’s been on and what experiences he’s had because he waits for the opportunity to come and almost waits for you to give it to him, which you would. ask.he is very patient. He is a great listener. And then just a guy you can bounce ideas off of.”.