It seemed like it was going to be the summer of Jayson Tatum.
First came winning an NBA title. Then came a massive, $314 million contract extension followed by being named the cover athlete for “NBA 2K25.”
Playing for Team USA in the Olympics was supposed to be the proverbial cherry on top for Tatum, but it was anything but that. The Celtics star won his second gold medal, but was a sidecar for the whole tournament on the loaded roster and logged two DNP-CDs.
Tatum’s Olympic experience was still a topic of discussion months later when the Celtics convened for the team’s media day Tuesday at Auerbach Center. He gave a measured response when asked if he would draw motivation from what happened, discussing how he felt “everything happens for a reason” and how Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla was probably thrilled he went through that situation.
The answer stood out to NESN’s George Balekji, who said on the “Hold My Banner” podcast that he thought Tatum showed a lot of maturity in that moment.
“That’s the perfect response. That’s what I want from Jayson Tatum,” Balekji said. “What did I say to you? I was worried his confidence would be shook. But for him to come out and say, ‘Everything happens for a reason. I’m not sure what it is yet, but I’m a believer everything does happen for a reason.’ And there is a humility that he hints from.”
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Tatum might not outwardly say he’s out for revenge, but it has to be in the back of his mind. And Tatum feeling slighted about how everything went down at the Olympics and now with something to prove is good news for the Celtics in their effort to repeat as champions this season.
Tatum will get the chance to exact some revenge when the Celtics host Steve Kerr, the Team USA head coach, and the Golden State Warriors at TD Garden on Nov. 6.