Celtics' Jayson Tatum makes bold MVP claim before 2024-25 season

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum did it all this summer. He won an NBA championship in June, graced the cover of NBA 2K25 in July, and took home a gold medal in August. In May though, there was one accolade he missed out on.

During the 2024 Western Conference Semifinals, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić was named league MVP for the third time in his career. Tatum was in the running for this prestigious award, however, he finished sixth in voting and had zero first-place votes to Jokić's 79.

Ahead of the upcoming 2024-25 regular season, Tatum revealed on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon that he likes his chances at dethroning Jokić and becoming the next MVP, via CelticsGlobe.

Jayson Tatum on who will win the 2024-25 MVP Award

'Can I say myself?' 👀pic.twitter.com/s2XGHmlNj1

— 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕮𝖊𝖑𝖙𝖎𝖈𝖘 𝕲𝖑𝖔𝖇𝖊 ☘️ (@CelticsGlobe) September 12, 2024

Since the Celtics had the best overall record in the NBA last season, Tatum was always going to be in the conversation for MVP. Yet, his numbers weren't quite high enough for voters. The five-time All-Star averaged 26.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and a career-high 4.9 assists per game. While those statistics are impressive, Tatum recorded a career-high 30.1 points and 8.8 rebounds per outing during the 2022-23 season, landing him in fourth for MVP voting.

The St. Louis native wasn't concerned by his slight scoring decline, as the Celtics were dominating and having a lot of success with a balanced offense, featuring reigning Finals MVP Jaylen Brown, two-time NBA champion Jrue Holiday, 2024 Olympic gold medalist Derrick White, and 2018 All-Star Kristaps Porziņģis. Tatum facilitated well and played winning basketball in the regular season and playoffs, which is a big reason why the C's eventually ended their 16-year title drought in June.

Can Jayson Tatum follow through on his bold prediction?

Since Tatum has so many talented teammates, he'll likely prioritize sharing the wealth over getting his scoring average up. This could hurt his MVP case, but help the Green Team in the long run.

Regardless of his points per game, it'll be tough for voters to ignore Tatum if the Celtics can put together another 60-win season. Winning isn't everything in the MVP race, yet it's undeniably a factor. And while Boston ended its lengthy quest for banner no. 18 last season, the historic franchise hasn't had an MVP winner in nearly four decades.

Hall of Famer Larry Bird was the last Celtic to be named MVP. He did so during the 1985-86 season and then proceeded to win Finals MVP en route to the Celtics' 16th championship. If Tatum can follow in Larry Legend's footsteps and be the first Green Teamer in almost 40 years to complete that trifecta, he'll climb very high in the all-time rankings of Celtics players.

Even though he's yet to turn 27, Tatum is already top-10 in every major statistical category for the playoffs in franchise history. The 2024 NBA champion could bolster those numbers too if his team is able to qualify for the playoffs for the 11th season in a row.

MVP chatter and all-time lists aside, the star forward should have another chance at extending the Celtics' championship window no matter what. And as Tatum knows, in Boston, winning rings is valued over everything else.