Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum opted not to discuss a hard foul delivered by his former teammate Grant Williams during Friday night’s game. When asked about the incident on Saturday, Tatum kept it brief, saying, “I don’t really want to talk about it. We handled business in Charlotte today, and now we’re focused on getting a win in Atlanta before heading back home.”
Later in the conversation, Tatum spoke about Williams in the context of teams playing more physically against him. “That’s their game plan,” he explained. “They put Grant on me to deny access to the ball, face-guarding to keep me from getting touches. It just pushes you to find more ways to impact the game. I lift before every game, so that (expletive) doesn’t bother me.”
While Tatum brushed it off, his teammate Jaylen Brown had a stronger reaction, disapproving of Williams’ move. “What are we even talking about? You all saw it—looked like a football tackle, like Ray Lewis going across the middle,” Brown said. “I thought JT and Grant were friends… but I guess not.”
Williams, however, downplayed any negative intent, explaining, “I’d never try to hurt anyone, especially not JT, one of my closest friends in the league,” he told NBC Sports Boston. “JB may have taken it a bit far, but he’s just protecting his teammate. JT’s my guy, no hard feelings.”
Despite the drama, the Celtics stayed focused and secured two consecutive wins against the Hornets, with scores of 124-109 on Friday and 113-103 on Saturday. The Celtics are now 6-1 and sit in second place in the Eastern Conference, just behind the undefeated Cleveland Cavaliers.
