Celtics Owner Slams Steve Kerr, Team USA for Jayson Tatum Decision

Conspicuously absent from Team USA's instant-classic 95-91 win over Nikola Jokic and Serbia in the Olympic semifinal? Jayson Tatum, who didn't get off the bench once again on Thursday.

The Boston Celtics superstar also didn't play in the Americans' opening Olympic win back in late July, causing a widespread uproar among Beantown faithful and NBA fans alike.

Tatum then started against South Sudan and Puerto Rico to finish Group play before reverting back to a bench role for the first stage of the knockout round. But the DNP-CD Tatum received against Serbia is far different than the 20 minutes he notched off the pine two days earlier versus Brazil.

Unsurprisingly, Boston owner Wyc Grousbeck isn't a fan of how his team's franchise player has been utilized by coach Steve Kerr and Team USA in France.

"I wouldn’t play Steve Kerr, let me put it that way, if I was putting a coach staff together," he said Friday on The Greg Hill Show . "I mean, what’s going on? It’s a mystery. It’s a complete mystery.

"I think Jayson doesn’t deserve anything but praise, kudos and playing rime," Grousbeck continued. "I think he and Jaylen [Brown] led us to this unbelievable championship and they’re not, apparently, helping out the Olympic team, they’re not able to be helpful in the Olympic team. Just leave it at that. It’s mystifying."

Coming off not just his first championship, but three straight First Team All-NBA selections, Tatum has been firmly stuck behind LeBron James and Kevin Durant in the United States' pecking order at forward.

Kerr has also committed to playing three bigs, while Devin Booker has fit in much more seamlessly than Tatum to a scaled-down role. The latter lacks Anthony Edwards' ability to pressure the paint and guard the ball, too, plus the connective, two-way tissue that make Jrue Holiday and Derrick White so indispensable for Boston.

Where does that leave Tatum? Simply as one of the best players in the world playing on arguably the most talented iteration of Team USA ever put together.

Either way, you certainly can't blame Celtics fans for being frustrated that Tatum has frequently been Americans' odd man out on their quest for Olympic gold.

Related: Steve Kerr Breaks Silence On ‘Simple’ Reason for Team USA Lineup Controversy