Jayson Tatum Spoils Kevin Durant's 25K Club Party, Shares Perfect Reaction to 54-Point Outburst for Celtics vs. Nets

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum spoiled Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant's milestone night, as he dropped 54 points to lead the Beantown team to victory.

Durant exploded for 37 points in the game, pushing him into the 25,000-point scorers club. He is only the 23rd player to achieve such feat and just the third active player to do so, following in the footsteps of LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony.

However, Durant would've been in a celebratory mood if not for Tatum, who had a monster game of his own to give the Celtics a 126-120 win. Aside from his 54-piece, the Celtics superstar recorded five rebounds and three assists in 41 minutes of action.

Jayson Tatum Joins Larry Bird in Celtics History, Reacts to Big Game vs. Nets

Tatum's big game propelled him to some elite company. He tied Larry Bird's records for the most number of 50-point games in Celtics history, with his Sunday output being the fourth in his career in the regular season, per ESPN.

Furthermore, Tatum now has the second-highest points in a single game for the 2021-22 regular season. LeBron and Trae Young are tied at first with 56 points, according to Statmuse.

In his postgame presser, Tatum had a rather epic reaction--and it couldn't be more perfect as well. When asked about his performance, he admitted that the basket appeared bigger, which usually happens when they are in the so-called "zone."

"When you kind of get into that zone the basket just seemed a little bit bigger," Tatum said.

The Celtics forward scored 34 of his 54 points in the second half. He was 16-for-30 overall, including going 8-of-15 from 3-point range. He also benefited from the charity stripe after making 14 of his 17 attempts from the foul line.

Kevin Durant Thinks It's Cool To Be in 25,000 Points Club

Fore his part, Durant shared that it's "pretty cool" to join the other greats in the 25,000 points club. After all, it's teling that only 23 players have made it to the elite list despite the NBA's 75-year history.

Durant, however, noted that he could have already been at 30,000 points had it not been for his injury that cost him a whole season and half.

The Nets star also didn't look too happy in his postgame media availability, perhaps because the Nets lost the game. Brooklyn really needed a win as they try to keep their playoffs hopes alive.

With the loss--which is their fourth straight--the Nets dropped to 32-33 on the season for the ninth seed in the East. As they keep losing, their chances of getting the automatic qualifying spots for the playoffs also diminish.

They still have a shot with the Play-In tournament, but that will be a difficult path for them given their current level of play.

Celtics Continue Climb Behind Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown

In contrast to the Nets who have been on a free-fall in recent months, the Celtics continue their climb after a tough start to the campaign. They were 15-15 in the first 30 games of the season, but they have since turned things around since the New Year.

In the 30 games they have played this 2022, they have a 22-8 record, highlighted by a nine-game winning streak before the All-Star break.

The Celtics are now fifth in the Eastern Conference standings, and they have a legitimate shot at making it to the second seed or even the top seed. They are just 1.5 games behind the second-ranked Philadelphia 76ers and 4.5 games back of the top-ranked Miami Heat.

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Written by: Jess Smith

WATCH: Jayson Tatum Ties Larry Bird After ERUPTING For 54 PTS ️ - from NBA