Jayson Tatum is ready to turn the page after taking the toughest loss of his basketball career four months ago.
The Boston Celtics' NBA Finals loss to the Golden State Warriors will stick with them forever. But with title aspirations for 2022-23, they had no choice but to move on quickly from the devastating defeat.
Celtics Talk: Hauser Mania!! Getting to know more about Sam | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Boston sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Tatum joined our Chris Forsberg for an exclusive 1-on-1 interview and shared how long it took him to put that Warriors series in the rearview mirror.
"The first couple days were the toughest," Tatum told Forsberg during Celtics Media Day. "And then you just think about how tough it was to get to that point. How probably much harder it is to get back and then to get over that hump. It's like, you can't skip the regular season. You can't fast-forward. Take it one day at a time."
The Celtics overcame a rocky start to the 2021-22 campaign and earned the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference. With their core back for another run, plus an exciting offseason addition in veteran guard Malcolm Brogdon, they're considered a favorite to hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy next June.
Boston Celtics
Find the latest Boston Celtics news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Boston.
Tatum knows living up to lofty expectations will be a challenge, but the three-time All-Star will embrace every moment.
"There's a sense of, we know what it felt like when we were playing that last half of the season, going to the playoffs as the second-best team in the league," Tatum said. "How do we get to that point? It should be exciting. Just playing basketball for a living, it's all we could dream about. Time does go by fast."
The Celtics will be laser-focused on Banner 18 once they begin their regular season on Oct. 18, but there's little doubt they'll be using their Finals loss as fuel. Veteran C's guard Marcus Smart revealed to Forsberg he still has nightmares about coming up short of a championship and will "never" get over that feeling.
Boston will wrap up its preseason with games in Charlotte and Toronto on Oct. 7 and 14, respectively. They will open the NBA regualr season against the Philadelphia 76ers at TD Garden.