I’m probably a little too invested in Boston Celtics basketball. The wins and losses tend to dictate my mood for the next day. I tend to sound off my harsh feelings on X, even if I don’t actually mean it. I didn’t really understand, or at least want to, how this could affect a player — until now.
Netflix’s new series, “Starting 5,” released on Oct. 9, highlights the lives on and off the court of five NBA players: LeBron James, Domantas Sabonis, Jimmy Butler, Anthony Edwards and Jayson Tatum.
This series, directed by Peter J. Scalettar is at its best when it is focusing on the lives of the players off the court. Scalettar does a great job of humanizing these players, whom many view as superheroes. Every one of these guys faces challenges in their personal lives while still having to perform at a high level 82 nights a year.
That’s the biggest message that the show delivers, and I think it hit home with me. You just don’t know what these guys’ lives are like off the court. So, while you’re yelling at them from your seat or on X, saying how bad they are, just take a step back and understand the immense pressure they are under.
Take, for example, Jayson Tatum.
The Boston Celtics superstar has been the best player on the most historic NBA franchise for seven years, and with that comes the pressure to deliver championships — which during the taping of the show he had not done. Add on that he is playing in Boston, where its fans and media are notoriously hard on star players, Tatum has become one of the most scrutinized athletes in the league.
“Starting 5” provided an inside look at Tatum’s Christmas Day matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers, and the internal challenge he faced during the game.
Tatum struggled throughout the first half of what in the NBA, is the biggest regular season game on the calendar. I’m sure I was firing off electric tweets at the time about how Tatum needed to wake up or take a seat on the bench, and in hindsight, I was wrong in doing so.
The Celtics star was expecting to spend Christmas with his son, Deuce, in LA before the game, and have him sit courtside. That morning, Tatum got a call from his mother, Brandy Cole, saying their plane wouldn’t start and they may not make the game. Throughout the night, Tatum kept looking at their empty seats, and it threw him off his game. Fortunately, in the second half, Deuce was sitting courtside, giving Tatum the extra juice needed to lead the Celtics to a crucial win.
Now, before I start talking about LeBron, let me just clarify something — I don’t like LeBron. He’s hurt me so many times growing up that I can’t stand the look on his face. Every time he faces off against the Celtics is appointment television for me because I get great joy when LeBron loses.
LeBron, you suck.
That said, “Starting 5” does show me a different side to LeBron that I didn’t know before. The amount of work that he has to put into his body at age 39 just to play a single game is insane. He puts in 12 hours of stretching, massages and recovery in order to perform at the level that fans expect every night.
To also see how LeBron handled the situation where his son, Bronny, suffered cardiac arrest while practicing at USC was powerful to watch. It’s just another example showing you can’t imagine what goes on in a player’s personal life while they’re still performing in front of thousands of demanding fans. The man almost lost his son, no one would have blamed him if he stepped away from the game, but he didn’t. Maybe that’s a different problem, but it’s something you have to appreciate.
Talking about another man I dislike, Jimmy Butler, and going to be honest, this show didn’t change my stance. He does a lot of talking and doesn’t back it up. After spending most of his time making espresso coffees, I don’t feel bad when the season didn’t go his way. He also goes out of his way to talk about his strong dislike for Boston. The feeling is reciprocated, Jimmy.
Edwards was an unexpected bright spot in the series for me. During the early episodes, he honestly didn’t seem like a great guy. He’s outwardly cocky without accomplishing much in the league, and there was also an instance where his family was visiting but he wouldn’t get off his video game. Not a great look.
But as the show went on Edwards began to mature, and he credits that to the birth of his first-born daughter, Aislynn. He seemed to be improving in juggling the responsibilities of becoming a star of the league while also having a family at home. Now, what the show didn’t show you is in the past year, Edwards has had three children with three different women. So, maybe he didn’t mature much after all. Guess that’s up to you to decide.
Now, this is probably where my bias comes in because the last episode titled, “Just Be Yourself,” was easily my favorite of the series. Seeing Tatum finally win the NBA Finals and join the ranks of Celtics legends to win a title is one of my all-time favorite sports memories. To see a behind-the-scenes look at the win was awesome as a Celtics fan.
Winning a title in Boston is special, and I’m glad they got Celtics legend Kevin Garnett for an interview. He explained what it’s like to be a Celtic in a way only Garnett can.
“That means the tradition still lives,” Garnett said. “That big oval in the sky isn’t the bat signal. The joint you looking up in the sky is a shamrock motherfucka!”
Seeing the bond that Tatum and his son have was special, so when the moment finally comes when Tatum hoists Deuce into the air with the green confetti falling was the highlight of the show for me.
If you can come away with one thing from ‘Starting 5” I hope it’s this:
These players are more than just their game-winning buzzer-beaters and flashy dunks. They’re humans, just like the rest of us, we should treat them as such.
