Photo of Jayson Tatum & Kevin Durant Goes Viral Amid Celtics Rumors

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Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics and Kevin Durant of the Brooklyn Nets.

Despite falling just two games short of an NBA Championship last season, the Boston Celtics have been anything but complacent this summer. They made key additions to the roster by signing forward Danilo Gallinari and making a trade for guard Malcolm Brogdon.

However, recent rumors have indicated that they may not be done making moves. According to multiple sources, the Celtics are involved in trade discussions to potentially acquire Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant. Those rumors were recently amplified by a viral photo recently.

A picture of Jayson Tatum and Durant made its rounds on Twitter on July 28. Based on their outfits, it seems as though the photo was taken at the premiere of the movie NYC Point Gods, on which Durant was an executive producer. The photo of Tatum and Durant caused some fans to question the Celtics star’s loyalty, but in all likelihood, it was just two friends taking a picture together. The two have a connection that dates back to last offseason.

Tatum and Durant were teammates during the Tokyo Olympics last summer, where Team USA went on to win a gold medal. They’ve maintained a relationship since, despite facing each other in the playoffs, so seeing them take a photo together is relatively unsurprising.

That being said, Tatum did take some time to answer questions about Boston’s current situation when reporters caught up with him ahead of the premiere.

Tatum: ‘He’s A Great Player’

When asked about the Celtics’ involvement in trade rumors surrounding Durant, Tatum kept his response neutral. While Tatum referenced the fact that he was previously teammates with the Nets superstar and that Durant is a great player, he also said that he loves the team Boston currently has.

“I’ve played with him during the Olympics. He’s a great player. That’s not my decision. I love our team. I love the guys that we got. I don’t know if that report is true or not,” Tatum explained.

Tatum and the Celtics took down Durant and the Nets in the first round of last year’s playoffs. Boston went on to make it all the way to the NBA Finals and, in turn, don’t necessarily need to make any more changes to their roster, as Tatum alluded to.

And while adding Durant to the team would undoubtedly make them better, the issue would be that Boston would have to part ways with All-Star Jaylen Brown in a deal. Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that they had already offered him, but regardless, no trade has been made yet.

When asked about the rumors that Brown had been thrown in a potential package for Durant, Tatum said that he’s hesitant to believe it.

Tatum: ‘I Don’t Believe Everything’

Reporters asked Tatum about the report that Brown was involved in a package for Durant, but the Celtics superstar pushed back on the notion. Obviously, Tatum didn’t deny the reports outright, but he said that he tends not to believe everything he sees on the internet.

“I don’t believe everything that I see on TV,” Tatum told reporters. “I done seen some s*** about me that was a lie, so you never really know what is true and what’s not true.”

Rumors of Durant joining the Celtics will undoubtedly continue throughout the offseason, but all fans can do is wait and see what happens.