Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce couldn’t be happier to see Jayson Tatum hitting a game-winner 3-pointer on Giannis Antetokounmpo to give the C’s the first victory of the 2020/21 season. In the dying seconds of the game, Tatum danced in front of Giannis before releasing the shot that gave the ultimate lead to the Celtics.
Tatum played great, scoring 30 points and playing like the star he is. The cherry on the top, however, came when hit the game-winner over Giannis, which reminded a lot of people of something that Paul Pierce did a couple of years ago. The Celtics legend once finished a game for the Washington Wizards the exact same way Tatum did, leaving one of the best phrases in the NBA in recent times.
TATUM IS CLUTCH 🚨 https://t.co/ffj5OypQwo
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 24, 2020
After the game was finished, Pierce reacted to the big play, remembering his old play and comparing it to Tatum’s.
I didn’t call bank I called game #jt0
— Paul Pierce (@paulpierce34) December 24, 2020
That was a reference to Pierce’s game-winner for the Washington Wizards in 2015, where he finished a game against the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference playoffs. After the game, Pierce was asked if he called bank on that shot. His response was a classic line: “I called game.”
Following the match, Tatum revealed if he called bank or game with that shot, just saying he was trying to make the right play.
“At the time, it was just try to make the right play,” Tatum said after the win, per Matthew Geagan of CBS Boston.
“I ain’t try to,” he laughed. “But the angle that I had and knowing how tall [Giannis] is… I tried to get some separation and get some arc on it.
“Once I let it go I knew it would hit the backboard, but I wouldn’t say I tried,” he echoed.
Tatum’s future is bright and he’s already demonstrating he has the tools and the mentality to be a serial winner in the association.
