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Brad Stevens: Jayson Tatum Succeeding By Simply 'Making The Right Basketball Play'

BOSTON (CBS) -- Jayson Tatum has exceeded many people's expectations so far in his rookie season, as the 19-year-old has put up strong numbers for a player his age and been remarkably consistent for a guy just entering the NBA.

Celtics head coach Brad Stevens talked about Tatum's impressive debut season so far with 98.5 The Sports Hub's Zolak & Bertrand on Wednesday. He had a simple explanation for why Tatum has aced the "eye test" and been so consistent so far: he does the right thing according to the situation, whether he has the ball or not.

"He's doing a great job for us of just making the right basketball play, and that's really all we want to ask of him right now," Stevens said of Tatum. "Obviously, there's gonna be times where we'll go to him late, where he's gonna have to make a play in isolation, where he's gonna have to make a one-on-one play, and he's certainly capable of doing that.

"He's spacing well when Kyrie has it. He's moving well when Al [Horford] has it in the post. He does a good job of being able to both play with the ball in isolation and make a play, but also know when to space appropriately and be able to play off others."

Jayson Tatum - Boston Celtics v Philadelphia 76ers
Jayson Tatum (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)

Stevens also talked about the improvement of the Celtics offense as the season has gone along, as well as the strong team culture that he and his players have built in recent years. Listen above for the full interview!

Listen live to Celtics-Mavericks Wednesday night on 98.5 The Sports Hub, starting with pregame coverage at 7:00.

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