The start of the 2024 Paris Olympics was quite eventful for Team USA. While the team got excellent production from several players in its 26-point rout of Serbia, the unavoidable spotlight draped all over All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum , who didn't see the light of play.
The NBA world was torn over what to think. Either something was wrong with Tatum, or head coach Steve Kerr lost his mind. Whatever it was, the Boston Celtics superstar has kept it mellow any time the subject has been broached.
Through it all
In many ways, how Tatum's been evaluated on the internet this summer isn't far from what he's faced over his career. Being the face of a royal NBA franchise, the 26-year-old has been in the limelight throughout his seven years in the association.
Even as Boston faced little adversity in its pursuit of an NBA championship this past spring, the Duke product dealt with the basketball world, comparing him to his teammate Jaylen Brown . When the championship round settled in, he heard folks calling him a role player going along for the ride. Then, after the jolt of thrill hit him as he watched confetti rain down in the arena and celebrated his first title, Brown took home Finals MVP, and Tatum received more backlash.
A month later, now with Team USA, Jayson was met with the opportunity to secure an NBA championship and gold medal in the same summer. Weeks after arriving in Paris, he got that medal, alright. But it was delivered after events he couldn't have anticipated.
"It was a lot. In the age of social media, you see everything," Tatum told The Athletic . "You see all the tweets and the people on the podcasts and people on TV giving their opinion on whether they thought it was a good decision or it was an outrageous decision or whatever. Obviously, I wanted to contribute more, and I've never been in [this] situation. I started playing basketball at [age] 3 at the YMCA, and I've never not played, so it was different and it was challenging."
Related: "Malone really was the weak link" - Isiah Thomas believes the Jazz would have beaten the Bulls if Karl Malone had made his free throws
Upward and onward
At least publicly, the NBA champion has been remarkably pragmatic. But then again, he is keeping things in perspective. Many players don't even reach the apex of their performance until somewhere in their late 20s to right around 30. For a relatively young player like Tatum, he has multiple NBA All-Star and All-NBA nods, an All-Star Game MVP, an NBA championship, and now a pair of gold medals—all before turning 27.
"I have two [gold medals] now; I have a championship, and everything doesn't necessarily go the way you expect it to go, right?" said JT. "I've learned to be like, 'OK, that's a part of it.' You move on, and I'm getting ready to enjoy the last little weeks I have before the season starts and get ready for another season."
The 2024-25 NBA season is another opportunity for a golden leap. As the leader of the best team in the association, No. 0 is positioned to return to the NBA Finals and add to his legacy in a striking fashion.
Most of all, the superstar forward has demonstrated excellent resolve throughout his seven years. Two summers ago, he was fresh off his lowest moment, which came in a finals loss to Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors, when he finished the 2022 postseason with an unprecedented 100 turnovers.
Still, he bounced back the next season by tallying a career-best 30.1 points per game and was in the MVP conversation all year long. Now, he just received the ultimate payoff with his first ring.
Related: "There's got to be some kind of bias that he's got against the Celtics" - Bob Cousy calls out Kerr for his treatment of Tatum
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