Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum is having himself an incredible summer. He began it by winning his first NBA championship, followed that up by signing the largest deal in NBA history via a supermax contract and is finishing it by trying to win a gold medal with Team USA alongside Los Angeles Lakers stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
By all accounts, this summer appears to be a dream come true for Tatum. In fact, playing for Team USA at the Olympics was a very specific dream that he wrote about in a fourth grade essay. He spoke about wanting to be the first player from St. Louis to play for the United States Olympic basketball team, a goal he has now accomplished.
But the Celtics star envisioned himself wearing a different NBA jersey when he made these dreams happen. In the same essay, via SportsCenter, Tatum predicted that he would be traded to the Lakers by the time he’s 30:
Jayson Tatum shared this essay he wrote when he was in 4th grade 👏 pic.twitter.com/XDOzEq3Aav
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) July 17, 2024
According to a fourth grade Tatum, he would play six years for the Phoenix Suns then join the Lakers via trade. Tatum is entering his eighth season with the Celtics and has another six years under contract in Boston. A trade to the Lakers is highly unlikely at any point in the near future, but it’s yet another piece of evidence that Tatum’s lifelong goal was, at one point, to be a Laker.
Lakers fans would certainly be ecstatic if they could land a player like Tatum at some point down the line. He is still only 26 years of age, meaning he has plenty of prime years remaining. And while he may end up being a career Celtic, fans will never give up the hope of one day acquiring Tatum.
Jayson Tatum recounts LeBron James denying him autograph
Team USA is so deep that Jayson Tatum came off the bench in their first exhibition game, though he got a look as a starter next to LeBron James in their wins against Australia and Serbia.
Tatum and James have had their fair share of playoff battles in the past, including in the 2018 Eastern Conference finals where the Cleveland Cavaliers prevailed over Boston in seven games.
Tatum managed to dunk over James which he joked was in response to the King denying him a photo and autograph when he was a child.
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