Julian Edelman has always been more than just a football guy; he’s a bona fide Boston sports fanatic. Remember that one time when Edelman, fresh off the Patriots‘ Super Bowl win against the Rams, turned to Instagram like a true Boston hype man and tossed a playful “Your turn, fellas” at the Celtics? Yeah, the NFL legend nudged the Boston Celtics to bring home a championship. But that’s not all.

His appreciation for the Celtics dated back to the 2017 season when the NFL suspended him for violating the its policy on performance-enhancing substances. The kicker? Well, if we’re not wrong, then a player, once suspended, must not have access to any of the facilities—at least, that’s what the league rules say. And that’s where it got pretty interesting. During his suspension, it was the Boston Celtics that let Edelman use their facility. No wonder the guy’s a Boston sports fanatic.

Fast forward to now—sure, he’s not out there snagging passes for the Patriots anymore, but that love for Boston sports? Still going strong. Especially when it comes to the Celtics. He’s traded touchdowns for courtside vibes, but the energy? Same old Edelman. Take his recent appearance during the Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks showdown on Tuesday. And not just that he enjoyed the Celtics’ nail-biting win over the Knicks—oh no, he even shared a message for the Celtics’ star, Jayson Tatum.

On Wednesday, Julian Edelman took to his official Instagram handle and shared a sneak peek of the Celtics vs. Knicks showdown while praising Tatum: “That’s a bad man right there,” he wrote in his IG story. Oh, and let’s be real—Edelman knew exactly what he was talking about. The reason. Well, let’s just say that throughout the game, Tatum had that “give me the ball, I got this” energy.

Because Tatum wasn’t just hoopin’ against the Knicks, the guy straight up carried the Celtics when it mattered. He dropped buckets. He forced overtime like it was light work. And the most interesting part? He set the stage for Kristaps Porziņģis to seal the deal with a tie-breaking three-pointer in the extra period. No wonder Julian Edelman was smart while choosing words and hit him with a “bad man” shout-out.

Tatum led the Celtics to an overtime win

New York had the lights, the noise, and just enough swagger to make it feel like they might actually pull one off. But the Celtics? They walked in like they knew they were the main act. To be more precise, it won’t be wrong if we say that last night’s Celtics vs. Knicks showdown kinda gave an Oscar winning showdown vibe. Tatum was the main character, Porziņģis the plot twist. Knicks came swinging, but Boston? They stole the climax.

Let’s start with the main character—Tatum. The guy was moving like he had the Madison Square Garden floor mapped out in his head. Dropped a cool 32 points like it was another day. The guy hit clutch after clutch and even forced overtime with a three-pointer when just 2.9 seconds were remaining. And that’s where it got pretty interesting. Because let’s be real—once the game stretched out, you knew the Knicks were in trouble. And of course they were.

Enter Kristaps Porziņģis, tall as a skyline and smooth as espresso. Sure, sure, standing at a towering 7’2” height, the guy scored 34 points. But the highlight of the game? That came when the Knicks were breathing down their necks in OT, and he iced it with a tie-breaking three when just 40 seconds left in the overtime that felt like the final scene of a movie. The result? The Celtics walked out of MSG with a 133-129 win and completed a season sweep of the New York Knicks.