DALLAS, TEXAS – JUNE 12: Jayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics dunks the ball in the first quarter against the Dallas Mavericks in Game Three of the 2024 NBA Finals at American Airlines Center on June 12, 2024 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Tim Heitman/Getty Images)
The generation that grew up with the “Backyard Sports” games got a dose of terrific news earlier this week when it was announced that the games would be making a comeback. The older versions of the games used to have some of the best athletes in each sport playing in the game as kids. Boston had players like Nomar Garciaparra, Paul Pierce, and Drew Bledsoe representing the city during the peak years of the game.
There’s no official news of pro athletes being included in the new games, but it would not be a surprise if they appeared in the soon to be released games. Here’s a look at some Boston athletes that should appear in the new games.
JAYSON TATUM – BOSTON CELTICS
Jayson Tatum should be a lock to appear in Backyard Basketball. He’s one of the best players in the NBA and a very marketable player. If there’s any player in Boston that feels like a complete lock to appear in the games, it’s Jayson Tatum.
DAVID PASTRNAK – BOSTON BRUINS
If Jayson Tatum is the biggest lock to be in the games then David Pastrnak is right behind him. Pastrnak is one of the biggest stars in the NHL right now and, much like Tatum, he’s a very marketable character. There’s no reason for Pastrnak not to be in the newest version of Backyard Hockey repping the Spoked-B.
RAFAEL DEVERS – BOSTON RED SOX
I don’t think Devers would be as much of a lock as Tatum and Pastrnak, but he’s got to have a real good chance of being in Backyard Baseball. Devers isn’t as much of a star in his sport as the other two, which could hinder his chance of being in the game. However, I feel that Devers is good enough to be considered among the best in the MLB and to get a shot at being in the game.
JAYLEN BROWN – BOSTON CELTICS
I don’t think Jaylen Brown gets as much love as he should, which makes me feel like he could be a borderline pick to make the latest version of Backyard Basketball. But are we really going to leave the reigning Eastern Conference Finals and NBA Finals MVP out of a game? We shouldn’t! Brown should be a lock to be in Backyard Basketball alongside teammate Jayson Tatum.
