Four-time champ says Boston traded Holiday and Porzingis for a ‘bag of Lay’s potato chips’

LeBron James’ first podcast episode with J.J. Redick called Mind the Game has already produced many memorable moments and quotes this week. The Lakers superstar dedicated major praise to Jayson Tatum, while talking about his growth through the years, and explaining how he’s already elite despite being so young.

But one of James’ most interesting takes came when he talked about the Celtics’ genius trades during the summer, still in disbelief of how easily the squad received stars like Kristaps Porzingis from Washington and Jrue Holiday from Milwaukee.

While talking about Tatum’s success, he mentioned the team around him. “He continues to grow, and they are in a position to make another title run,” said the 39-year-old. “And like you said, personnel helps. Add [Kristaps] Porzingis and getting Jrue [Holiday] for a bag of Lay’s potato chips, that helps as well. But when you go and you start scouting for Boston, [Tatum’s] the No. 1 guy, for sure.”

LeBron speaks highly of Jayson Tatum in this clip

Also says Celtics got “Porzingis and Jrue for a bag of Lays potato chips”😭😭 pic.twitter.com/t7D07udN9r

— ²³𝙻𝚎𝙱𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚜🏀☄️🌎💞 (@BronGotGame) March 19, 2024

LeBron recalled that he finally won his first NBA title a bit over a decade ago, while Jayson, who is still trophy-less, has already been to many conference finals. “He’s 25 years old and I believe he’s been to the conference finals four times, been to the NBA Finals once, he’s 25 years, I didn’t win my first one until I was 28, I think [Jokic] won his first one at 27, I think [Michael Jordan] was 28 as well,” he expressed to J.J. Reddick.

“I think we have a lot of expectations on [Tatum], but he’s experienced a lot of winning in his career so far. Obviously, everyone wants to see him get over the hump, but four conference finals and a Finals appearance before the age of 26 is – that’s elite,” James insisted.

Tatum has been playing at an MVP level once again this campaign, with averages of 27.1 points, 8.3 rebounds and 5 assists while shooting 47.4% from the field and 37.9% from range. As LeBron mentioned, the young star is still a bit underrated despite getting attention of All-NBA honors, All-Star selections and constant mentions in the MVP conversation.

Incredibly enough, the 26-year-old has never experienced an NBA campaign without making it to the playoffs, proving James’ point, who said that the Celtics forward is elite because his mindset is so used to winning all the time.

The Celtics forward recently criticized NBA load management: ‘I don’t like to sit out’

While load management has become one of the most important topics in modern NBA basketball, Tatum recently spoke against it. The Boston star said that he “don’t like to sit out,” after playing 27 minutes this Sunday. The truth is, the forward has only missed three games this campaign, out of Boston’s 67 contests so far.

As he’s currently enduring an ankle injury, he spoke about how he felt when he wasn’t able to play an entire game alongside his teammates: “I’ve been here [for] 7 years, they understand kind of what they’re dealing with. I don’t like to sit out. I understand if I was injured or whatever. I’ve said it before – I just love to play the game, especially on the road.”

“So many out there with Tatum #0 jerseys on came to see me play, so I kind of take pride in sure I’m available as much as I can,” Jayson mentioned his love for the fans when thinking about missing matches.

The MVP candidate has competed in 503 out of a possible 559 games during his seven-year career, as the forward only missed just three matches during his first two seasons in the NBA. Today, he’s averaging 27.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game, as Boston lead the league standings this campaign.