There’s a lot of movement happening in the sporting world, and there are big words that were uttered in the past 24 hours!
Jayson Tatum is still in his first season as an NBA player, but fans, players and pundits are already raining him praises left and right. One of his rivals in the Eastern Conference finals actually gave him some very high praise!
There are more sports news and updates that must be covered: Carlo Ancelotti is the new head coach of a big Serie A side, and Harry Kane unleashed some daring barbs about the coming World Cup.
LeBron James thinks Jayson Tatum will become a great player
Jayson Tatum is still not allowed to drink alcohol in the United States, but he has already made a name for himself as a reliable option for the Boston Celtics. He is a key cog in the success of Brad Stevens’ seemingly starless team, and he is only bound to get better with time.
The former Blue Devil is having a fantastic offseason for Beantown, scoring 18 ppg to lead a scrappy Boston team that wasn’t even supposed to make the second round of the playoffs. It’s thanks to his efforts, alongside the rest of the young Celtic core, that they now have an unbelievable 3-2 series lead over LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Even the King himself admitted that Tatum is playing like a veteran in the league. He believes that the young kid from St. Louis, Missouri will become a star Boston can get behind in the coming years.
“I think his composure [is impressive], he plays above his age,” James said of Tatum during a shootaround before the game. “I think the unfortunate events of injuries they’ve had has allowed him to, I believe, get better faster than they’ve even expected here.”
James’ statement is very high praise for Tatum, who has become a very important piece for Boston’s Game 5 preparations. The performance of the rookie in the absence of both Gordon Hayward and Kyrie Irving makes a lot of Boston fans excited. They can only imagine what the series would have been if both of their marquee stars are healthy!
It’s not every day that James speaks his mind about rookies, but the entire basketball world listens when he does open his mouth about an outstanding new player. There’s no need to question Tatum’s future in the league when a transcendent talent such as James thinks that he is something special.
Boston will be a terrifying team for years to come.
Ancelotti is the new Napoli boss
Napoli fell short of toppling Juventus in the recently concluded Serie A season, and the board felt that a change of managers would help them make the extra push to the top.
The Ciucciarelli hired Carlo Ancelotti to replace Maurizio Sarri for the coming season to help the club steal the Scudetto from the Old Lady. The board is more than thankful for Sarri’s brilliant start for the club, but the arrival of the former Real Madrid and Bayern Munich manager is a great coup for the Serie A runners-up.
The coup was so surprising to many that even star striker Lorenzo Insigne was caught off guard. However, he believes that he can take the club to greater heights.
“He’s a great coach. I didn’t expect this, but we know our president [Aurelio De Laurentiis] has these cards up his sleeve,” Insigne said. “The arrival of Ancelotti is a real coup, he’s a great tactician.”
Ancelotti has enjoyed a successful managerial career, being the only manager to win a league title in four of Europe’s top five football leagues. He also has three Champions Leagues and three domestic cups under his belt.
Kane: England have nothing to lose
[huge_it_video_player id=”8″]
There are a lot of questions surrounding England’s 2018 World Cup squad, and doubters are ringing if England can even make it out of the group stages with a midfield that lacks creativity. There are also questions about England’s ability after successive disappointments in the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Euros.
England captain Harry Kane immediately dismissed those questions. While he knows that England will not be looked upon to win the entire thing, he believes that the team should be more than capable of handling the tough tasks of the tournament and return to England with pride.
“From our point of view, we’ve kind of got nothing to lose so we’ve just got to go there and be free, just enjoy it,” Kane said. “It’s an amazing experience – I’m sure we’re going to look back on it when we’re retired and remember every part of it, so why not just give it everything we’ve got?”
With players such as Trent Alexander-Arnold and Marcus Rashford making their first World Cup appearances for England, there’s little to no doubt that Gareth Southgate is looking ahead when it comes to England’s chances of winning. And going by Kane’s words, it seems like this young squad will be playing with their hearts on their sleeves.
●●●
CHECK OUT OUR BLOG FOR MORE SPORTS STORIES & ODDS
Stay updated with everything sports and betting.
Follow us on social Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.