Jayson Tatum Breaks Silence on Being Benched at the Paris Olympics

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum didn't have the chance to make a big impact at the Paris Olympics like many fans were expecting. Instead, his time spent on the bench for Team USA became a hot topic of discussion.

As Team USA powered through their run to a gold medal at the Paris Olympics, one of the biggest storylines often wasn’t the games themselves but the limited minutes Tatum saw on the court.

Tatum, a foundational piece for the NBA champion Boston Celtics and a first-team All-NBA selection, found himself on the bench for critical moments, including the group play opener and the medal-round game against Serbia, where offense was tough to come by early on.

Celtics fans were quick to voice their frustration with coach Steve Kerr’s decision—how could one of the league's top talents be sitting on the sidelines?

Tatum himself admitted that the situation was challenging, especially in today’s social media-driven world.

“It was a lot. In the age of social media, you see everything... Obviously, I wanted to contribute more, and I’ve never been in [this] situation," Tatum shared with Jared Weiss of The Athletic . But despite the limited minutes, Tatum maintained a positive attitude. “I wasn’t moping around... I stayed ready and did what was asked of me, and I won a gold medal, right?”

Part of the reason for Tatum’s reduced role was his shooting struggles. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Tatum shot just 38.1% overall and missed all four of his three-point attempts. Kerr, needing reliable scoring, instead turned to other players like Jrue Holiday and Derrick White, who were delivering on both ends of the floor and were considered an upgrade over Tatum defensively.

When all was said and done, Tatum only saw action in four of Team USA's six Olympic contests and averaged 5.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 1.0 steals in 17.7 minutes per game.

Now, with two Olympic gold medals, an NBA championship, and the honor of being on the cover of NBA 2K25 on his resume, Tatum isn't dwelling on the past; instead, his focus is squarely on the future and finding a way to repeat alongside an incredibly talented Celtics roster in 2024-25.

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