Jayson Tatum 'chasing greatness' as Boston Celtics gear up for title defence vs Denver Nuggets in Abu Dhabi


Reem Abulleil
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The word ‘great’ gets thrown around a lot in sport, but when it comes to discussing ‘the greatest’, conversation becomes much more nuanced.

It takes a lot to be dubbed a GOAT (greatest of all time) in professional sport and Boston Celtics’ forward Jayson Tatum does not shy away from stating he aspires to be called that one day.

“Absolutely,” is his unflinching response when asked if he’d like to be regarded as the greatest of all time in the future.

Since he helped guide the Celtics to their first NBA championship title since 2008 four months ago, Tatum has made it clear his ambition goes beyond winning one ring.

“I think it’s important to acknowledge history, acknowledge the guys that came before you, the teams, they kind of set the standard. But you could never dream too big,” Tatum told The National in an interview at Etihad Arena on Thursday, ahead of the Celtics’ upcoming preseason clashes with the Denver Nuggets at the NBA Abu Dhabi Games.

“Chasing greatness should be the goal, if you fall a little bit shorter of whatever that looks like, at least you know you gave yourself the chance to chase that.”

Tatum spent six weeks of his summer rubbing shoulders with greatness as he teamed up with the likes of LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Stephen Curry, on the USA squad that secured gold at the Paris Olympics.

While the players have since switched their focus to their respective teams and are preparing for the new NBA season, Tatum shared they’re all still in touch on a group chat, where apparently James shares the most memes.

“We still talk pretty frequently. We won a gold medal; we are bonded forever through that,” added Tatum.

The 26-year-old says getting an up-close and personal look at what makes those players great was an invaluable experience and that the Olympics as a whole showed him how much the game has grown globally.

This was Tatum’s second Olympic gold medal, having also been part of USA’s triumph in Tokyo 2020. But he admittedly went through difficult moments in Paris, where head coach Steve Kerr did not play him in two of the six games, and gave him limited minutes otherwise.

Much has been made of Tatum’s reduced role at the Olympics, especially given he was coming off an impressive run to the NBA title and had just signed the largest contract in NBA history.

The Celtics announced in July that Tatum agreed to a five-year, $315 million supermax extension, which would keep the five-time All-Star in Boston through the 2029-30 season.

Last week, Tatum said Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla was “probably the happiest person in the world that I didn't win Finals MVP and that I didn't play in two of the games in the Olympics”.

Jayson Tatum of Boston Celtics during a practice session in Abu Dhabi. EPA
Jayson Tatum of Boston Celtics during a practice session in Abu Dhabi. EPA

On Thursday, Tatum elaborated on why Mazzulla found value in him facing adversity.

“Just in a world where you got a new contract, you’re on the cover of NBA2K, cover of Sports Illustrated, you win a championship, where everything is going how you want it to, there’s a little stint in there where things didn’t go as well as you want it to, how are you going to respond, how are you going to come back even better?” explained Tatum.

“So that’s the challenge.”

Mazzulla is renowned for his philosophical approach to coaching, and his out-of-the-box methods.

He uses animal kingdom metaphors, shows his players everything from football highlights to footage of orcas attacking their prey, and has encouraged his team to not view themselves as defending champions when they tip off their new NBA campaign later this month because he finds the term too “passive-aggressive”.

“Joe is very unique in the sense of… what I really respect about him is he does things in his own way,” said Tatum of Mazzulla, who at 35, became the youngest coach to win an NBA championship since 1970.

“He really has come into his own as a coach and coaches the team how he sees is the best way to do it from his own perspective. Whether other people agree with him or not, I can respect that he does it in his own way.”

After suffering heartbreaking defeats and multiple near-misses in the last few years, Tatum and his Boston teammates are in a very different position entering this 2024-25 season.

The league has not witnessed a back-to-back champions since the Warriors defended their title in 2017-2018 and given the intense summer Tatum, and his fellow Celtics/USA teammates Derrick White and Jrue Holiday had, fatigue and emotional wear and tear could play a factor in this upcoming term.

“We just got to be aware, aware of that, aware of the moment, stay as fresh as possible. There’s little things you can do throughout the season to stay young. Because it’s a lot playing to June 17th, but that’s part of chasing greatness,” said Tatum.

While several teams in the Eastern Conference have made changes to their roster – most notably the New York Knicks – the Boston group has remained mostly intact with Tatum and NBA Finals MVP Jaylen Brown once again ready to lead the squad.

There had been doubts early on about whether the Tatum-Brown tandem would work but the pair have learnt to co-exist over the years and their on-court chemistry has delivered a record-breaking 18th NBA title to the city of Boston.

On the key to forming a successful partnership with Brown, Tatum said: “Just growing up. I’m 26, been in the league, going on my eighth year now, you have to go through the process of maturing, as a man, maturing as a basketball player in this league. Understanding how each year is different and how you need to be around great players, you need to be in a great organisation to give yourself the best chance to win, which is what we’ve been doing.”

The world will get a chance to get to know a lot more about Tatum when 'Starting 5', the docu-series he is starring in, is released on Netflix next week.

Along with Tatum, the series followed James, Jimmy Butler, Anthony Edwards, and Domantas Sabonis throughout the 2023-34 season, offering a behind-the-scenes perspective to fans of the game.

“I’m just really excited for it to come out. Filming the entire last season, obviously capturing us winning a championship and the behind-the-scenes look, the highest moments and the lowest moments, and everything in between. It was special to be a part of and it’s going to be really cool to see and I think the reception is going to be great,” said Tatum.

The Celtics will receive their championship rings and tip off their title defence on October 22, hosting the Knicks at TD Garden.

“Last year is behind us, we can’t dwell on that, or live in the past. This is a new season, teams have gotten better, the league has shifted and we have to be prepared for that,” stated Tatum.

In the third edition of the NBA Abu Dhabi Games, the Boston Celtics will take on the Denver Nuggets in two preseason encounters on October 4 and 6 at Etihad Arena on Yas Island

The team

Photographer: Mateusz Stefanowski at Art Factory 
Videographer: Jear Valasquez 
Fashion director: Sarah Maisey
Make-up: Gulum Erzincan at Art Factory 
Model: Randa at Art Factory Videographer’s assistant: Zanong Magat 
Photographer’s assistant: Sophia Shlykova 
With thanks to Jubail Mangrove Park, Jubail Island, Abu Dhabi 

 
Expert advice

“Join in with a group like Cycle Safe Dubai or TrainYAS, where you’ll meet like-minded people and always have support on hand.”

Stewart Howison, co-founder of Cycle Safe Dubai and owner of Revolution Cycles

“When you sweat a lot, you lose a lot of salt and other electrolytes from your body. If your electrolytes drop enough, you will be at risk of cramping. To prevent salt deficiency, simply add an electrolyte mix to your water.”

Cornelia Gloor, head of RAK Hospital’s Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy Centre 

“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can ride as fast or as far during the summer as you do in cooler weather. The heat will make you expend more energy to maintain a speed that might normally be comfortable, so pace yourself when riding during the hotter parts of the day.”

Chandrashekar Nandi, physiotherapist at Burjeel Hospital in Dubai
 

The Facility’s Versatility

Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
 
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
 
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
 
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
 
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
 
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket

How being social media savvy can improve your well being

Next time when procastinating online remember that you can save thousands on paying for a personal trainer and a gym membership simply by watching YouTube videos and keeping up with the latest health tips and trends.

As social media apps are becoming more and more consumed by health experts and nutritionists who are using it to awareness and encourage patients to engage in physical activity.

Elizabeth Watson, a personal trainer from Stay Fit gym in Abu Dhabi suggests that “individuals can use social media as a means of keeping fit, there are a lot of great exercises you can do and train from experts at home just by watching videos on YouTube”.

Norlyn Torrena, a clinical nutritionist from Burjeel Hospital advises her clients to be more technologically active “most of my clients are so engaged with their phones that I advise them to download applications that offer health related services”.

Torrena said that “most people believe that dieting and keeping fit is boring”.

However, by using social media apps keeping fit means that people are “modern and are kept up to date with the latest heath tips and trends”.

“It can be a guide to a healthy lifestyle and exercise if used in the correct way, so I really encourage my clients to download health applications” said Mrs Torrena.

People can also connect with each other and exchange “tips and notes, it’s extremely healthy and fun”.

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MATCH INFO

Qalandars 112-4 (10 ovs)

Banton 53 no

Northern Warriors 46 all out (9 ovs)

Kumara 3-10, Garton 3-10, Jordan 2-2, Prasanna 2-7

Qalandars win by six wickets

Cricket World Cup League 2 Fixtures

Saturday March 5, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy (all matches start at 9.30am)

Sunday March 6, Oman v Namibia, ICC Academy

Tuesday March 8, UAE v Namibia, ICC Academy

Wednesday March 9, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy

Friday March 11, Oman v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium

Saturday March 12, UAE v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium

UAE squad

Ahmed Raza (captain), Chirag Suri, Muhammad Waseem, CP Rizwan, Vriitya Aravind, Asif Khan, Basil Hameed, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Karthik Meiyappan, Akif Raja, Rahul Bhatia

UK-EU trade at a glance

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Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products

Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries

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Cutting red tape on import and export of food

ETFs explained

Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.

ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.

There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.

Updated: October 04, 2024, 4:19 AM`