Tatum said that he has turned down very few endorsement opportunities so far in his careerNBAE/GETTY IMAGES
Celtics F Jayson Tatum has "piled up endorsements in his first 1½ NBA seasons" and has already "been in several commercials, including ones for Gatorade, Imo’s Pizza, and Honey Dew Donuts," according to Gary Washburn of the BOSTON GLOBE. Tatum is repped by 24/7 Sports Management's Jeffrey Wechsler, and Tatum said, "When I picked my agent, I told him I want to do as much off-the-court stuff as I can. Right now I’m young, so I try to do everything as much as possible. ... I don’t really turn anything down." He added, "I haven’t spent any of my Celtic money. I’ve lived off my endorsements." Washburn noted the "building of the Tatum brand started in high school when he was named a three-time Gatorade player of the year in Missouri." Wechsler and marketing partner Colin Smeeton "immediately pursued a Gatorade deal when Tatum left Duke after one season." Wechsler said, "There are brands that I think are great targets. There are brands that he’s asked us to target and there are brands that his family has brought up.” Tatum admitted that last summer "a lot of off-the-court stuff came a lot faster" than he thought due to the Celtics' run to the Eastern Conference Finals (BOSTON GLOBE, 3/3).
EXPANDING THEIR PORTFOLIOS: ESPN's Paul Pierce noted Warriors F Kevin Durant sees himself as more than one-dimensional, saying, "He's a businessman, he's a basketball player, he's so many other things." Pierce: "Players of my era and before, basketball was everything for us. We didn't have brands. Everybody couldn't be a brand" ("The Jump," ESPN, 3/1).
