This is not what the NBA wants you to think about. And Jayson Tatum probably doesn’t want to think much about it either. This is not how athletes at his level process things. But Tatum was honest Tuesday when he talked about shortness of breath during games more than a month after testing positive for COVID-19. That he sometimes does not have the same energy as before.
Here is what he said according to ESPN.com:
“I think it’s going to mess up your breathing a bit,” Tatum said after the team’s result on Tuesday afternoon before the presentation of the Denver Nuggets. ‘I’ve experienced a few games where I do not want to say [I was] struggling to breathe, but you know, you get tired much faster than normal.
‘Just running up and down a few times makes it easier to exhale faster or get tired. I’ve noticed this since I had COVID. It’s just something I’m working on.
“It’s gotten better since the first game I played, but I still deal with it from time to time.”
That does not mean that Tatum is not effective, because it certainly is.
Just last night, he won 21 by 112-99 over the Nuggets. But Tatum’s stats have been lower since his return. It may only be temporary, but the scary thing is that we do not know. We know that COVID-19 can scar the lungs in the long run.
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Tatum can recover in time, probably too. But then … can he not? No one can be completely sure that he will know the consequences next month or next year. It’s mostly a hope. It feels like he has to, as he has to be one of the strongest people in the NBA. But the virus itself would not care much about it.
Even if it remains just a slight shortness of breath, Tatum and probably can have a good career. Maybe even a Hall of Fame one. He has been one of the biggest stars in the league for the past few years, and still with one of the highest ceilings. He has every chance of being one of the best Celtics ever, which is not easy to do.
But the thought at the back of everyone’s mind must be, what if he’s never quite the same? What if he never gets the outburst that separates him from 98 percent of the league again? Surely, he will still be a player of the highest level, which will make him very rich, very famous and still make the Celtics famous at some point. He will hardly suffer.
But we do not know if it will be. And if Tatum’s career is cut short in any way, it’s going to be a waste. Will he think it’s worth playing this season if he doesn ‘t get the goals in his head simply because his lungs are startled by a virus he should not have gotten? If he can not be the man the Cs turn to at the end of the playoffs because he can not just grab enough oxygen? If it’s worse if it and his life are affected from then on? Or if his career is cut short?
We do not yet know how much this will happen. The fear is that the number will be much higher than what we are now considering. Just because Tatum was the most honest does not mean he’s the only one. If we find out, we’ll probably feel different about this season. But no league is worried about the consequences later if there is money now.
Let’s scroll to the other end of the sports spectrum. Whoever makes the Vegas Golden Knights think these golden helmets are a good idea should be beaten quickly with a crocodile. Check out these fucking things:
It looks like the movies Gladiator and Tron collided with each other on the interstate. There is simply no one on the planet who said, ‘Do you know what we need? More Notre Dame. Not even the Fighting Irish and their most ardent supporters think there should be more of it. We do not even need the Notre Dame we currently have.
Fortunately, the Knights lost 3-2 to the Avalanche in the final minute of regulation. This is exactly what they deserve to skate around in these light bulbs. The Chili Peppers Tried It by Woodstock, gatgate. Look what they have become.
Let’s end it with LeBron pulling up from the logo … and ballooning. And Portland’s CJ McCollum laughs about it.