The accolades and awards continued to come in for Jayson Tatum, and this time, it further cements that he’s been a top-5 player in the league. Tatum was named first-team All-NBA for the fourth straight season, doing so this time in unanimous fashion.
The league announced the All-NBA teams Friday and Tatum was one of four players to earn unanimous first-team honors. Tatum, Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nuggets star Nikola Jokic and Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander all earned 100 out of 100 votes, totaling 500 points.
“Congratulations to Jayson on his All-NBA selection,” Boston president Brad Stevens said in a statement. “To be honored five years in a row, with four First-Team selections, speaks to his dedication and drive to be amongst the game’s best. He’s a great teammate and player, and is deserving of all the accolades that come his way.”
Tatum came in at fourth place in MVP voting, which tied a career-high. The Celtics star becomes the first player in franchise history to earn four straight first-team All-NBA honors since Larry Bird. No other C’s player received a vote for All-NBA this season. As a reminder, Jaylen Brown wasn’t eligible for postseason awards as he only played in 63 games. The cutoff to be eligible for any honors is at 65 games.
Tatum will look toward rehab now after his rupturing his Achilles tendon in the second round against the Knicks. Fans will hope he’s back at full strength considering at 27, he’s about to enter the prime years of his career. Tatum averaged 26.8 points, 8.7 rebounds and a career-high 6.0 assists in 72 games for the C’s this season.
Tatum, Antetokounmpo, Gilgeous-Alexander, Jokic and the Cavaliers’ Donovan Mitchell make up the first-team All-NBA. The Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards, the Lakers’ LeBron James, the Warriors’ Stephen Curry, the Cavs’ Evan Mobley and the Knicks’ Jalen Brunson were all named second-team All-NBA. The Pistons’ Cade Cunningham, the Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns, the Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton, the Thunder’s Jalen Williams and the Clippers’ James Harden were the third-team All-NBA selections.
