"We got love-hate relationship between us" - Jayson Tatum fires subtle shot at Sixers, calls Lakers vs Celtics as best rivalry in sports
During the 2017 NBA draft, Jayson Tatum was drafted third by the Boston Celtics. His selection came behind Markelle Fultz, who was picked first by the Philadelphia 76ers, and Lonzo Ball, who was picked by the LA Lakers. Based on how things are going for these three, it seems clear that Tatum deserves to have been picked first.
The first pick in the 2017 draft actually belonged to the Boston Celtics but was acquired by the 76ers via a trade. The 76ers, who had just assembled a young collection of talent that included Joel Embiid, Jahlil Okafor, Dario Saric and Ben Simmons, needed a point guard, and they thought Fultz was going to be their guy.
The Celtics, on the other hand, were set at the point guard position as Isaiah Thomas put up superstar-caliber numbers. As such, it made sense for them to trade down since picks one and two were both projected to be point guards.
The 2017 draft was revisited by Jayson Tatum and Complex Sports in a segment they call "Cap or No Cap." During the segment, Tatum was asked if there was an NBA fanbase he hated most.
He responded by saying:
"Philly had the No. 1 pick, so they could have picked me. We got a little love-hate relationship between us."
Today, it would be easy to say that Jayson Tatum should have gone first. However, at the time, Philadelphia was looking to draft someone who would fit what the 76ers already had.
Furthermore, Markelle Fultz was coming off of a great college season. During his lone year at Washington, he put up 23.2 points while grabbing nearly six rebounds and dishing six assists. He also shot 47.6%.
Looking back, if the 76ers had the chance to redo that draft they might just select Tatum. Especially after how Fultz's stint with them went down.
Jayson Tatum says the Celtics vs. LA Lakers has the best rivalry
In the same segment with Complex Sports, Jayson Tatum was asked if he thought Duke and North Carolina had the best rivalry. He neither agreed nor disagreed with the statement, but he said that the Boston Celtics and the LA Lakers "is a big deal."
Many will agree with Tatum in that regard since both those teams have 17 championships each. As such, it seems that they are both trying to one-up each other.
Furthermore, they had some of the best clashes in the NBA Finals, starting with their first showdown in 1959, when the Lakers were still in Minneapolis. The rivalry appeared to peak during the midst of the Larry Bird versus Magic Johnson rivalry but entered a lull in the 1990s.
Their rivalry was reignited in the late 2000s starting in '08 when Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen beat the Kobe Bryant-led Lakers in six games.
The Lakers got their revenge in 2010 by beating the Celtics in seven games.