Two questions remained unanswered, often frustratingly so, as Jayson Tatum endured growing pains while still blossoming into an All-NBA caliber player the past couple of seasons.
Was he capable of elevating his teammates?
And was he willing to do so if it meant sacrificing shots he was confident he could make?
The answers – a resounding, Marv Albert-like “yes!,” followed by another — have arrived during this stirring Celtics stretch in which they’ve won 12 of 14 games, 21 of 27, and have transformed from a team that found painfully creative ways to lose to one that looks determined to play deep into June.