Jayson Tatum's incredible performance in the Boston Celtics' Game 7 win against the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday afternoon was a historic one, to say the least.
He set an NBA record for the most points in Game 7 history with 51. It's the third-most points by a Celtic in any playoff game, trailing only John Havlicek (54 points in Game 1 of the 1973 Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks) and Isaiah Thomas (53 points in the 2017 East semifinals vs. the Washington Wizards).
Tatum also became the first player in playoff history to accomplish three other impressive feats.
The first is scoring 50-plus points with zero turnovers. It's quite an achievement to have the ball in your hands as much as Tatum did in Game 7 and not commit a single turnover while dropping 51 points.
The Celtics forward also became the first player to tally 50-plus points, 10-plus rebounds and five-plus assists in a series-clinching win.
In addition, Tatum became the first player in league history to score 50 or more points in a regular season game, the All-Star Game and a playoff game -- all in the same year.
Boston Celtics
So, yes, it really was a record-breaking performance from Tatum.
The Celtics will need several more great performances from their top player if they're going to defeat the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals and then win the 2023 NBA Finals for the franchise's 18th championship. After Sunday, there shouldn't be any doubts about Tatum's ability to rise to the challenge.