Boston Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have formed one of the best duos in basketball, and an NBA championship in 2024 has only reinforced that position. Despite their shared success, a media narrative aimed at comparing and dividing them still exists.
Movie star and former New England resident Adam Sandler does not subscribe to this divisive discourse. He believes that all the outside noise claiming there is a breakup between Tatum and Brown is not reality, according to the Bill Simmons podcast.
“Don’t try to divide them,” he told director and New York Knicks fan Josh Safdie. “They love each other.”
In the 2024 NBA Finals, Brown won the Finals MVP award while Tatum led the team in points, assists and rebounds throughout the playoffs. Their partnership on the court, completed by talented starters like Jrue Holiday and Derrick White, led to total domination in April, May and June. The Celtics went 16-3 in the 2024 playoffs and beat the Dallas Mavericks with relative ease in the Finals, winning in five games.
Although Brown was the one who hoisted the Bill Russell Finals MVP trophy, Sandler believes Tatum played a vital role in his strong run.
“The reason [Brown] “The reason Tatum was scoring a lot was because everyone was afraid of Tatum,” Sandler said.
Tatum faced a lot of double-takes in the playoffs because opponents believed the best way to slow down Boston’s high-powered offense would be to surprise him and generate turnovers. That strategy didn’t work because more often than not, Tatum made the right play to break the heavy defensive pressure.
He averaged a series-high 7.2 assists per game and recorded 54 potential assists, six more than the Mavericks’ star point guard. Luka DoncicOne of his favorite pastimes was Brown, who shot 44 percent from the field while averaging more than 20 points per outing.
When Tatum didn’t get a shot, Brown stepped up to the plate. And the five-time All-Star was more than happy to see his partner in crime receive Finals MVP honors after a decisive victory at TD Garden.
“When I play basketball and I win because my teammate is amazing, I’m always excited. I go home with just as much excitement,” Sandler says. “Tatum felt the same way. He loved watching his buddy score.”
The NBA loves to celebrate a player for his accomplishments, putting him on a pedestal for his individual accolades. However, that’s not how the Celtics operated in 2023-24. It was an all-around effort that made them nearly unstoppable, and it was all because Tatum and Brown shared the spotlight and let each other take the lead when needed.
Adam Sandler and Josh Safdie have been big fans of Jayson Tatum since the beginning
Sandler’s passion for basketball is no secret. The award-winning comedian is frequently spotted on basketball courts across the country playing basketball with strangers. He’s even appeared in several basketball-themed movies, including Raw gemstones And Hustle.
Besides being a basketball fan, Sandler is a huge fan of Tatum.
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“One of the coolest, most awesome, hardest-working guys,” he praised. “I remember meeting Tatum… He was a rookie. And he was very nice and I remember saying, ‘Now he’s just a stud.’”
Respect also seems to be mutual. When Raw gemstoneswhich stars Sandler and was directed by Safdie and his brother Benny, was nearing its release, Tatum attended a private screening of the 2019 film. The screening was for Celtics only and was hosted by Celtics legend Kevin Garnettwho plays himself in the A24 film.
“When we showed Gems At the Boston Celtics, it was KG who organized the screening. [Tatum] “I was one of the few players there,” Safdie recalls.
Since the critically acclaimed film hit theaters, Tatum has won two gold medals and an NBA championship while being named to five All-Star teams and receiving three All-NBA First Team nominations.
He’ll look to pad his resume during the 2024-25 season with a deep Celtics team nearly identical to the one that won it all in July.
