While sidelined with an Achilles injury, Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum has served as an extra, unofficial coach for the Green Team. And if you listen to his analysis of Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George, he sounds like an extra Celtics scout, too.

At the beginning of December, Tatum was a guest on “The Morris Code Show,” a livestreamed podcast (of sorts) hosted by ex-Celtic Marcus Morris and his twin brother and 2020 NBA champion Markieff Morris. The Morris brothers covered a lot with Tatum, including a query about which young player in the NBA has impressed him the most this season.

Before they could even finish their question, Tatum said it was undoubtedly George.

“I’m just seeing that he got a different burst about him, he got a different confidence,” he stated. “I’m sitting on the bench like, ‘Oh, he really worked on his game this summer.’ And I can tell.”

On November 3rd, Tatum watched from the bench as George dropped 31 points on 56% shooting at TD Garden. His performance helped the Jazz escape Boston with a 105-103 win and wowed Tatum, so much so that the Celtics star found Jazz head coach (and former Celtics assistant) Will Hardy and assistant coach Jason Terry to discuss George’s improvement.

They told him that George spent the entire summer in Utah to work on his body and his game. The 22-year-old is averaging a career-high 24.2 points per game while shooting 45% from the field and almost 37% from deep. For his efforts, he was a recent nominee for Western Conference Player of the Week.

“I’ve been watching so much basketball, I’ve really seen who took the next step, who’s been working on their game,” Tatum said. “He’s someone that stood out from the rip.”

Tatum has likely relayed his opinions to the Celtics staff, as Boston’s final game of 2025 is in Utah on Tuesday night. The 12-19 Jazz haven’t been a team to fear since 2022, yet their last two wins came over the Eastern Conference-leading Detroit Pistons and the rising San Antonio Spurs, who are currently in second place in the Western Conference.

George recorded 31 points and 28 points in those wins, respectively. Slowing him down will be key for the 19-12 Celtics if they want to finish the year on a high note.

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