Celtics All-Star Weekend Notebook: Jayson Tatum inspires next generation, Jaylen Brown eyeing new leadership role, JD Davison a Rising Star

SAN FRANCISCO — All-Star weekend was, by and enormous, a multitude. From the strikingly-long intermission that had gamers questioning if gameplay would ever resume to the lackluster ambiance at Chase Middle, the NBA’s try at reviving an occasion that has lengthy been on the decline fell brief by virtually each account.

For the Celtics, it was largely a profitable weekend. Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum’s All-Star crew, dubbed Shaq’s OGs, gained the match. Brown and Tatum, the crew’s two youngest gamers, seemed good of their restricted stints; Tatum tallied 25 factors, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 block throughout the 2 mini-games, whereas Brown recorded 12 factors, 2 rebounds, and 1 steal, at one level occurring a private 8-0 run.

Sunday’s sport was the primary occasion, but it surely was maybe the least fascinating a part of a jam-packed weekend of actions, at the least from the Celtics perspective.

Right here’s what stood out from the weekend of festivities, from on the bottom in San Francisco and Oakland.

Jaylen Brown probably eyeing NBPA presidency

Off the courtroom, All-Star weekend serves as a possibility for the Nationwide Basketball Gamers Affiliation (NBPA) to convene and make management selections. The NBPA is answerable for negotiating the league’s collective bargaining agreements, dealing with disputes, and advocating for participant welfare, amongst different endeavors.

Brown has been concerned with the NBPA all through his profession and has been one of many league’s vice presidents since 2019.

On Sunday, Brown was re-elected by his friends as one of many league’s seven VPs. And, he hinted that he ultimately could also be headed towards the NBPA presidency — a place that Pelicans guard CJ McCollum at the moment holds.

“They’re form of pushing me ahead to perhaps take the following step and be the official president,” Brown stated. “I’ve a whole lot of stuff occurring, however I get pleasure from utilizing my platform, studying in regards to the gamers, listening to from the gamers, and making use of a few of our voices to what must be modified and what we wish to be modified.”

Brown stated he has discovered the NBPA expertise enriching.

“I’ve realized rather a lot, been on a whole lot of telephone calls, a whole lot of Zoom calls, talked lots of people, hung out with Adam [Silver], constructed a relationship with everyone on the NBA facet,” he stated. “We’ll see how the following 12 months or two performs out, however I like serving the gamers and serving the following era of gamers.”

The renewed NBPA management position was removed from Brown’s solely off-court accomplishment this weekend. The 2024 Finals MVP additionally spent a day in Oakland, the place he introduced the launch of a brand new incubator constructing for Black-owned companies as a part of his new nonprofit, the Oakland XChange. (A deeper dive into this endeavor is coming later this week on SB Nation.)

Jayson Tatum inspiring the following era of hoopers

Tatum excelled in his seventh All-Star look; he recorded 6 factors on 3-4 capturing within the first sport, and adopted that up with a game-high 15 factors on 6-7 capturing, together with 3-4 from three.

Regardless of being Group Shaq’s best scorer throughout the 2 video games, Tatum was in all probability by no means destined to win MVP from a panel of voters that disproportionately represented the Bay Space. Steph Curry finally garnered 13 of 15 MVP votes, with only one vote going to Tatum.

Of word, Tatum was notably the youngest participant on Group Shaq (Tatum is 26 and in distinction, Jalen Brunson, who was on the Younger Stars crew, is 28). However, Tatum’s placement on essentially the most veteran crew is smart contemplating his profession accolades (NBA championship, two Finals appearances, 5 Japanese Convention Finals appearances), and the truth that there’s now a youthful era of gamers who look as much as him.

A type of guys is Stephon Fort, the Spurs standout rookie who was chosen fourth total within the 2024 NBA Draft.

Over the summer season, Fort wasn’t shy about admitting that Tatum was his favourite participant within the league, and on Friday, he obtained the possibility to play towards him within the All-Star Sport (just some days after taking part in towards him in Boston).

Afterward, Fort gushed in regards to the expertise.

“I’ve been a giant fan of JT for a minute now,” Fort stated. “Simply with the ability to share the courtroom with him — it’s positively a blessing.”

Fort fittingly wore Tatum’s signature Nike sneakers through the Rising Stars sport, whereas Washington Wizards rookie Bub Carrington wore Jaylen Brown’s 741 efficiency footwear. The rookies donning the Celtics stars’ footwear mirrored the truth that regardless of Tatum and Brown’s comparatively younger age, they’re already thought of OGs.

JD Davison will get the possibility to shine on the large stage

Maine Celtics star JD Davison was invited to take part within the Rising Stars Problem, which occurred on Friday evening. The occasion featured three groups: two groups comprised of the NBA’s finest rookies and sophomores, and one made up of a forged of G-League standouts.

Davison, who has averaged 25.1 factors and seven.8 assists in his third 12 months as a two-way participant for the Maine Celtics, was named a member of the G-League crew — which defeated a crew full of elite NBA gamers like Amen and Ausur Thompson — to advance to Friday evening’s last sport.

The G-League crew finally fell brief in that one, lacking out on the possibility to compete on All-Star Sunday evening. Davison expressed his disappointment at the truth that his crew did not advance, noting he was notably excited in regards to the likelihood to probably compete towards Celtics teammates Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.

“I used to be going at them regardless,” Davison stated with a smile, shortly after his crew fell 25-14 within the championship sport.

Davison is on his third (and last) two-way contract with the Celtics and has gotten higher and higher every year he’s been within the league, pointing to his continuity with the group as a profit.

Nonetheless, he’s but to obtain a possibility to play within the massive leagues. Davison stated that he’s used Payton Pritchard as a useful resource about tips on how to cope with the psychological facet of issues.

“I decide his mind rather a lot, speak to him in regards to the ups and downs,” Davison stated.

The winner of the Rising Stars match, a crew led by Dalton Knecht, Zach Edey, Stephon Fort, and different younger skills, finally fell to the OGs within the first sport of the All-Star match. However, it might have been much more enjoyable to see Davison get the possibility to battle towards Brown and Tatum.