Team USA called up Jayson Tatum for the Olympics right after he won the NBA championship. But he didn’t get minutes on the star-studded national roster and Steve Kerr benched him twice. The controversy was bound to blow up, especially since Kerr and Tatum would soon see each other again. And this time on the opposite ends of the court. With ESPN‘s Stephen A. Smith calling out Kerr for his decisions, the Celtics’ latest victory feels like a significant moment in this ongoing saga.

When the Warriors met the Celtics in November for the first time this season, things were very different. Golden State seemed like a top team. Stephen A. Smith wasn’t holding back when he called out Steve Kerr on First Take before the game. He made it clear: “To do what he did to Jayson Tatum, I hope Jayson Tatum embarrassed him, I hope they destroy, I’m not rooting against the Warriors, I’m just talking about Jayson Tatum going on there and putting on a show.” But that didn’t happen in November.

It happened on Monday. After a dominant 40-point victory over the Golden State Warriors, the Boston Celtics have made a statement. Watching Tatum light up the scoreboard with 22 points in Boston’s blowout win over the shorthanded Warriors had analysts buzzing. Stephen A. Smith couldn’t hide his excitement, talking on First Take, “I’m never going to be sad to see Jayson Tatum give it to the Golden State Warriors.”

He went on to address Steve Kerr’s handling of Tatum during the Olympics, and honestly, you can feel his frustration. SAS didn’t hold back: “You don’t go up to an All-NBA player in an Olympic competition, before a game and tell him, ‘I don’t know if I’m going to be able to find minutes for you.’”

For Smith, it was one of the most baffling coaching decisions he’s ever seen!

“Tatum’s been First-Team All-NBA the last 3 years,” Smith reminded us, and yet Kerr couldn’t make room for him? Stephen A. wasn’t shy about calling it a mistake, especially as Tatum continues to shine every time he faces the Warriors. “It was one of the most egregious things that I’ve seen and anytime Jayson Tatum kicks the Warriors’ ass, I’m going to be happy about it, As long as Steve Kerr’s the coach. That was wrong.”

You can’t blame him—it’s hard not to root for Jayson Tatum after that snub. Plus the win showed us why the Celtics are still one of the title contenders despite poor form in December and January.

Jayson Tatum backs the Celtics, doesn’t pay heed to any inconsistency issues

The Celtics have been on a bit of a rollercoaster this season, but Monday’s 125-85 win over the Warriors was definitely a highlight. Jayson Tatum, leading the way, gave Boston their biggest road victory of the year. Still, they’ve been a little inconsistent lately, alternating wins and losses. Sitting at 11-9 since December 7, they’re trailing teams like the Cavs and Thunder.

Tatum shared how the team stays grounded during the long grind of the season: “I think understanding just I’ve been through it before,” Tatum said. “And I’ve been through spurts of the season where I was trying to rush to get to the end and skip steps. And it resulted in us losing in the conference finals, whereas last year we didn’t get bored, we didn’t skip steps. We just tried to get a little bit better every day and we know the result of that. So keeping that in perspective and just understanding it’s hard.”

The grind of a 100-plus-game season can be brutal, so Tatum and the Celtics are turning their attention to the finer details. With guys like Tatum, Jrue Holiday, and Derrick White playing nonstop since the Paris Olympics, keeping things interesting has become a must. It’s not just about avoiding fatigue—it’s about staying sharp and fully engaged

It’s clear winning every game isn’t easy. As Tatum put it, “It’s hard to win night-in and night-out in the league. I don’t think it’s a question of, like, are we bored or not? It’s tough. We get everybody’s best shot. We put a lot of work in and sometimes we don’t play as well as we would like to. And that can be frustrating sometimes. But I wouldn’t say we’re bored or anything.”

The Celtics still have three tough playoff teams left to face on this road trip, so the real test is keeping up the momentum.

Despite their up-and-down record recently, Joe Mazzulla is liking what he’s seeing, especially after a rough loss in Toronto. “I’ve liked a lot of the things we’ve been doing on both sides of the ball,”

The Celtics are on the right track, and their journey isn’t over yet.