As if the news about Derrick White’s extension and the Celtics ownership group looking to sell the team wasn’t enough news for the day.
Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics have agreed on a five-year, $314 million supermax contract extension according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. This is the largest contract in NBA history after teammate Jaylen Brown held that title for a year with his five-year $304 million supermax extension last year. Tatum’s extension will contain a player option.
The Celtics have locked up their core players as Jrue Holiday agreed to a new deal before the end of the season, Porzingis was extended after he was traded to Boston last summer, and Derrick White, hours before Tatum’s contract was agreed, signed a four-year, $125.9 million extension. After achieving their first title together, the Celtics decided to commit a lot of money to this group.
Tatum is coming off a regular season where he averaged 26.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game while shooting 47.1% from the field and 37.6% behind the arc. Tatum was great all season, making his fifth All-Star Game, and was named to the All-NBA First Team for the third straight year.
In the Finals. while Tatum’s scoring numbers dipped only averaging 22.2 points, it was his playmaking (7.2 assists per game) that was the difference maker in the Celtics winning its first championship since 2008.
It’s been quite the offseason for Tatum as he participated in his first duck boat championship parade, signed a supermax extension, and will soon be playing with Team USA in the hopes of bringing home the gold medal in the Olympics in Paris later this summer. If Team USA were to win gold, it would be Tatum’s second Olympics gold medal after he was on the 2021 Tokyo Olympics team where he averaged 15.2 points for the Red, White, and Blue.
