The mother of Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum is not happy with how her son has been used during the Paris Olympics. And she hilariously let USA Basketball and Steve Kerr know about it this week.
On Saturday, the men’s USA Basketball team will be looking to win a fifth straight Olympic gold medal. They will be sizable favorites against France on their home soil, but on Thursday afternoon it looked like they may not even make it to the gold medal game.
The men’s basketball team got a serious scare from Nikola Jokic and Serbia in the semifinals and were behind by double-digits early in the fourth quarter of Thursday’s game. If not for the heroics of Stephen Curry and Lebron James, head coach Steve Kerr would have had to explain his decision-making during a disastrous Olympic loss.
While Kerr does not have an easy job, his use of Celtics star Jayson Tatum has confused many. The five-time All-Star is just a few months removed from leading Boston to an NBA title. But the Warriors head coach has instead chosen to lean on older stars on the roster. Tatum has been a healthy scratch in two of the team’s games, including against Serbia.
Jayson Tatum’s mother criticizes USA Basketball coach Steve Kerr
Jayson Tatum’s use during the semifinals drew criticism from ESPN basketball analyst Dick Vitale after the win. “Someone pls let me know is [Jayson Tatum] injured as he hasn’t received the PT (playing time) u would expect an All-NBA player to get,” he wrote in a post on X.
That comment then surprisingly received a response from none other than Tatum’s mother, Brandy Cole. “No he not,” she replied. “But if you find out what’s going on please let me know – unacceptable and makes NO SENSE.”
Jayson Tatum stats (Paris Olympics): 3 games, 19 points, 18 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks
Cole then followed that up by reposting a separate post from Barstool Sports Celtics reporter Dan Greenberg. “If Kerr is watching this and willingly deciding ‘Yeah, Jayson Tatum couldn’t help here’ then he legitimately cannot coach in 2028.”
It will be interesting to see if Jayson Tatum lands any minutes in Saturday’s gold medal game if USA Basketball struggles at all against France.