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Jayson Tatum is often regarded as one of the best players in the NBA, and he had quite the summer this year. Tatum is one of the core stars on the Boston Celtics, and the team was dominant all year long. Their dominance continued into the postseason as the Celtics cruised through the playoffs, and they ended up winning the NBA championship. Tatum didn't win Finals MVP, however, despite being the favorite. Jaylen Brown was the recipient of the honor.
After the NBA Finals ended, Jayson Tatum had some time to celebrate his first ever championship, but he didn't have a lot of it. Tatum quickly switched gears to Team USA and the Olympics. He was part of this year's roster that consisted of some of the best basketball players in the world. Tatum unfortunately struggled a bit while playing in the Olympics, and he spent a good amount of time on the bench.
Tatum is supposed to be one of the best players in the NBA, but he didn't win Finals MVP, and he didn't have a very big role on the Olympics team. He won an NBA championship and a gold medal at the Olympics, but fans still found ways to poke fun at him because of his struggles. Still, Tatum's resume is just fine.
“I think a lot of people are like, ‘Oh, he's out for revenge,'” Tatum's trainer, Drew Hanlen, said, according to an article from ESPN. “I don't think Jayson looks at it like that. He's like, ‘Compare my resume at 27 to Michael Jordan, who never won one at 27. Compare it to LeBron, who had won one. Compare it to Steph, who had one.”
Tatum obviously hears the criticism, but he knows how to handle it. Stevens thought that Tatum dealt with everything in a great way.
“Jayson, I thought, handled everything like a total pro and champ and put team first and won his second gold medal right after winning his NBA championship,” Stevens said. “I also think that those guys will take any motivation that they can get to work and get better.”
Al Horford wasn't happy to see Jayson Tatum on the bench
A lot of Jayson Tatum's friends and family expressed their frustration after seeing Tatum on the bench for Team USA. Tatum's parents did, and so did Al Horford. Horford wasn't a fan of how Tatum was treated, and he thought Jaylen Brown should have made the roster, too.
“I personally was not happy about it,” Horford said. “Those guys, they're very special to me. And even though it was nothing against me, it motivated me and all of us for this season. I know that they handled it well. They're fine. But when you see those two guys, the amount of work that they've put in, the sacrifices they have made. To be on the top of their games and that happened to them, it was hard to watch [the Olympics] and not see them in the position that we would've hoped to see them in.”
At the end of the day, Tatum is doing well with his NBA championship ring and his Olympics gold medal. Not too many people get to experience winning at both of those levels.
