Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum has long desired a follow back from Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James. Thursday, he finally got the follow—on Instagram.
IT WORKED! pic.twitter.com/gMnWWXswJG
Tatum asked for the follow back on Twitter when he was a middle schooler, and that tweet has since become legendary.
@KingJames Follow back it's Larry Hughes nephew from st. Louis and Abe and Rj Lil cousin and Justin Son Follow Back pic.twitter.com/AnOnb7E8
LeBron also explained why he's just now getting around to following Tatum. He commented on Instagram: "By the way I never saw this tweet until after the season was over. People told me about it going into the Boston series but I wasn't on social to see it for myself."
The LeBron response, years after giving Jayson Tatum the follow back! #Celtics pic.twitter.com/SW5ITXVrxT
The two briefly went head-to-head in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, as Tatum threw down a triumphant dunk over LeBron. LBJ got the last laugh, however, leading his Cavs to their fourth straight NBA Finals, where they suffered a sweep at the hands of the Warriors.
Tatum emerged down the stretch in the regular season and postseason, stepping up as Boston played without Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward. The 20-year-old averaged 13.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game as a rookie. He shot 43.4 percent from downtown. The former Duke Blue Devil was the No. 3 pick in the 2017 draft.
