{"id":81350,"date":"2024-06-13T17:18:27","date_gmt":"2024-06-13T21:18:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=81350"},"modified":"2026-03-11T00:04:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T04:04:20","slug":"former-teammate-sticks-up-for-boston-celtics-star-grant-williams-jayson-tatum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2024\/06\/13\/former-teammate-sticks-up-for-boston-celtics-star-grant-williams-jayson-tatum\/","title":{"rendered":"Former Teammate Sticks Up for Boston Celtics Star"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a recent interview for FanDuel, Charlotte Hornets forward Grant Williams<\/a> spoke about the amount of criticism Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum<\/a> receives in the media. Williams believes Tatum “doesn\u2019t necessarily need or deserve” some of the criticism that gets thrown his way.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like he definitely receives a lot of criticism that he doesn\u2019t necessarily need or deserve. I think people nitpick him because of his talent across his team, and they expect him to lead and perform at this level. But when you\u2019re surrounded by the people he\u2019s surrounded by, he can have an off night. At the same time, you gotta allow a little bit of grace. This guy has been a 25-point-per-game scorer over almost his entire career, getting triple doubles night in, night out, and leading a team. Sometimes leadership doesn\u2019t necessarily mean you\u2019re the elite scorer of the night; it might just mean that the team is playing you a certain way. I think that\u2019s the growth he\u2019s had.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Williams and Tatum were teammates on the Celtics from 2019-2023. After spending a few seasons with the team that drafted him, Williams joined the Dallas Mavericks last summer via a sign-and-trade. Ultimately, his Mavericks tenure was uneventful. After playing 47 games with the team, the Mavericks traded Williams<\/a> to his hometown Hornets.<\/p>\n

As for Tatum, he is currently one win away from winning his first-ever NBA championship as the Celtics are up 3-0 in the NBA Finals<\/a> against the Mavericks. In the series, Tatum is averaging 21.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 7.3 assists per game.<\/p>\n

Former Teammate Sticks Up for Boston Celtics Star<\/h2>\n

Jayson Tatum Previously Stuck Up for Grant Williams<\/h3>\n

Earlier this year, long-time Celtics commentator Mike Gorman<\/a> spoke poorly about Williams. During a radio interview, Gorman called Williams “annoying” and “a bad locker room guy.”<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was annoying to everybody. I think initially everybody thought, \u2018Oh, isn\u2019t he kind of a wise ass, but he\u2019s kind of cute, and he\u2019s kind of funny.\u2019 And then it just kind of wore thin, and it got thin quickly in Dallas, obviously. If you start to take on (Luka) Don\u010di\u0107, you\u2019re not going to be around for long.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, yeah, he had some issues in that area that if he doesn\u2019t get rid of \u2014 he\u2019s not good enough to have teams say, \u2018Well, OK, but despite that, we\u2019re going to keep him here because he\u2019s a great player. He\u2019s not. He\u2019s an extra. He\u2019s an eighth, ninth, 10th guy on your roster. So, those guys are very replaceable, especially if you get a guy that\u2019s a bad locker room guy.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re a bad locker room guy and you\u2019re the eighth or ninth guy, you\u2019re not going to be the eighth or ninth guy for long because you\u2019re not going to be on the team for long.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

However, Tatum was quick to take it to social media and defend his former teammate.<\/p>\n

\n

Grant Williams= Great teammate! https:\/\/t.co\/JYHCavRNC3<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Jayson Tatum (@jaytatum0) March 13, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n