Celtics' Jayson Tatum Says Olympics Benching 'Was Different and It Was Challenging'

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum reflected on his limited playing time for the U.S. men's national team in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

"It was a lot. In the age of social media, you see everything," Tatum said, per Jared Weiss of 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," he added.

Tatum didn't appear in two of Team USA's six Olympic games, recording just 11 minutes during a 98-87 victory over France in the gold medal contest.

He wasn't able to find any type of shooting rhythm with his fluctuating playing time, averaging a mere 5.3 points in 17.7 minutes per game while shooting 38.1 percent from the field and missing all four of his attempts from behind the arc.

Tatum wasn't benched without reason, as LeBron James and Kevin Durant both wrapped up exceptional performances in Paris. Still, it was surprising to see his decreased role after helping the Celtics earn a championship in June. He also previously averaged 20.5 minutes per game during the United States' gold medal run in the Tokyo Olympics.

U.S. men's basketball head coach Steve Kerr acknowledged Tatum's lack of playing time, telling reporters that he "felt like an idiot not playing him" during a 110-84 win over Serbia in the group stage.

The small role was new for Tatum, as he's been tasked with carrying the offensive burden for teams throughout his playing career. He averaged 33.3 minutes per game in college at Duke before immediately entering Boston's starting lineup as a rookie after he was selected with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2017 draft.

Tatum is still deciding on returning to Team USA for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, telling ESPN's Brian Windhorst on Aug. 10 that he's not letting his minutes from the Paris Games affect his choice.

Despite going through the challenge of adapting to a new rotation spot, the Celtics star added another accolade to his résumé by earning the second Olympic gold medal of his career.