Jayson Tatum's father brings his successful coaching career to Australia's NBL – Andscape

As Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics participated in the 2024 NBA Championship ring ceremony and raised banners on Oct. 22, the Illawarra Hawks head coach took a break from his team's practice in Australia to watch from his cell phone.

Yes, Justin Tatum was on the other side of the world, holding back his joyous feelings, but it was important to him to be there for his son and the Celtics – who play the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday (ESPN, 7:30 p.m. ET). Watch celebrations in real time.

“I couldn't miss this moment if my life depended on it,” Justin Tatum told Andscape. “My team and my organization understood. I felt nothing but happiness and it was a sign of the success that my son and his teammates enjoyed. I hope he continues to experience that feeling throughout his NBA career. I was just really happy for him.”

Justin Tatum is trying to win a championship as head coach of the Illawarra Hawks. He came to the Illawarra after winning three state championships and 10 conference titles in 16 seasons as one of Missouri's most decorated high school basketball coaches at Christian Brothers College High School in St. Louis and Soldan High. His biggest challenge in high school basketball was practicing against his son – Justin Tatum went 1-9 against Jayson's Chaminade High School.

After a successful stint as CBC's head coach, Justin Tatum left on February 28, 2023 to become Illawarra's North American scout and special advisor for basketball operations. Illawarra Hawks majority owner Jared Novelly is from St. Louis and, like Justin Tatum, also attended CBC and St. Louis University.

However, what was initially a front office position evolved into an assistant coaching position on the Hawks' staff under head coach Jacob Jackomas.

“If I wanted to challenge myself, this was an opportunity to do it,” said Justin Tatum, 45. “I wanted to make sure it was OK with the head coach first. I didn't want them to throw me on the staff and say, 'Hey, you gotta take this guy.' Me and the head coach talked about it and felt like it was a good opportunity for me to be here because I would act as an intermediary for the American players.”

The Hawks parted ways with Jackomas after a 2-7 start last season and replaced him with Tatum. Under Tatum, the Hawks finished the regular season with a 12-7 record, rose to fourth place in the NBL standings and secured a spot in the playoff play-in. Last season, the Hawks posted a top-four offense (118.0 offensive rating) and a top-2 defense (109.6 defensive rating). The Hawks reached the 2024 NBL playoff semifinals before losing to Melbourne United in a three-game series in late March.

“They allowed it [Jackomas] Go mid-November. “I was the only person on our team with head coaching and playing experience,” said Tatum, who played professionally in the Netherlands. “It wasn't that I was going to change everything, but I wanted to take a closer look at it at the time…

“I learned the league spontaneously. When I got here, I did my homework. But when I got on the hot seat, I had two solid assistant coaches who had been coaching in the league for some time. I spent nights with them learning the names of the referees and other teams' players and what they play. I had to learn the FIBA ​​rules.”

Jayson Tatum said proudly, “They made him interim and he went on a crazy run and made the playoffs and what would be like our conference finals.”

Tatum also finished second in Coach of the Year voting this NBL season, falling just a few votes behind Melbourne United's Dean Vickerman. Tatum was rewarded with a three-year contract from Illawarra before the start of the playoffs.

“He has earned the respect of his team, coaching staff and fans in a relatively short period of time, so I look forward to seeing what he can achieve in the long term,” Hawks general manager Mat Campbell said in a statement about Tatum.

Even though Justin Tatum is far from the United States, he is always watching his son and the Celtics.

The Hawks are based in Wollongong, a city of about 300,000 people in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia, about 50 miles south of Sydney. From St Louis, the flight takes approximately 21 to 28 hours with two stops to get to Sydney and from there to Wollongong.

Celtics games in Australia usually take place at 11am. On practice days, Justin Tatum will watch the first half at work and the second half at home. The timing allows him to watch most Celtics games.

However, due to the time difference, it is much more difficult for Jayson Tatum to watch his father's games.

“If we play at 2pm on a Sunday, on the East Coast where he is it would be around 11 or midnight. It's rolling the dice. But he always supports. When he wakes up and sees that we won, he will re-tag or post that the Hawks won or that Dad succeeded. He’ll watch the highlights and know we’re OK,” Justin Tatum said.

When the Hawks' season ended, Justin Tatum personally witnessed his son “getting the monkey off his back” as the Celtics won a “well-deserved” NBA championship. Weeks after winning an NBA title, Jayson Tatum received a five-year contract extension worth up to $315 million. However, Jayson Tatum also played sparingly for USA Basketball as they won the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, not participating in two competitions.

Justin Tatum was in Paris for the Olympics and was confused about his son's lack of playing time.

“I was okay with it if it made sense. If it made sense not to play it like a matchup,” Justin Tatum said. “But if you can’t find time for him or whatever [USA head coach] said Steve Kerr. That doesn't make too much sense. [Jayson] I had a long season and a long summer and I just wanted to make sure he was healthy. “I just wanted to make sure that at the end of the day you know that you're still one of the best players out there. “No matter what the coach's decision was or whether he felt like he didn't need you, we as coaches are not always right. Hopefully you interpret this as a sign of motivation and not disrespect. You are one of the five best players. Keep your head up.'

“He wasn’t good at not playing. But he wasn't in the room sulking or throwing chairs around, nor was it a topic of conversation at dinner. He said he could have stayed with his family, stayed home or done what was true. But he was happy to be out there winning gold and he never really played with LeBron [James]Steph [Curry] or KD [Kevin Durant]. Being with these guys was a great experience and the most important thing we talked about.”

Justin Tatum says he misses his three children, two grandchildren and just the simple things that family and home provide.

“I definitely miss barbecue and home-cooked meals,” Tatum said. “Aside from my family, I miss doing something active every day. If the weather is good, I play a little golf after training, a quick nine holes. The rest of the time is downtime. There's not too much to do. The food here is great. Other than Pizza Hut, I don't really miss anything from home when it comes to food.

“I'm in a good situation here, until the end of winter until spring. And then I go home and it's the end of spring turning into summer. So I have spring and summer all year round. I only wear shorts and a sweatshirt here and there. My family comes here regularly. My daughter is coming in December. Jayson can't come because he's playing at the same time. But it’s a good place to live.”

Jayson Tatum said: “I talk to him every few days. He likes it over there.”

Justin Tatum said there are “highly talented guys” in the NBL. Former NBA players in the NBL include Montrezl Harrell, Ian Clark, Matthew Dellavedova, Matthew Hurt, Rob Edwards, Bryce Cotton and Derrick Walton Jr. NBL alumni in the NBA include Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball, Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey and Oklahoma City Thunder forward Ousmane Dieng, Milwaukee Bucks guard AJ Johnson and Washington Wizards forward Alexandre Sarr. Additionally, 17-year-old New Zealand Breakers forward Karim Lopez is a announced candidate for the 2026 NBA Draft.

“And I’m not just talking about the former, current or future NBA players who are here,” Justin Tatum said. “The Australian players are incredibly good. It's very physical. A lot of things that you can’t get away with in the States, they let you get away with here.”

The Hawks entered Wednesday with the second-best record in the 10-team NBL at 6-3 and an average of 98.5 points per game. Justin Tatum said Illawarra's offense and camaraderie had been key to its early success this season.

Justin Tatum dreams of one day becoming a coach in the NBA. But at the moment his biggest goal is to get the Hawks their first title since 2001, when they were still the Wollongong Hawks.

“He wants to coach in the NBA one day as an assistant or at another level. “This is a stepping stone to what he wanted to accomplish,” Jayson Tatum said.