Jayson Tatum discusses his ‘strange pace’ at Paris Games

Jayson Tatum spoke about his “weird rhythm” when discussing his performance at the Paris Olympics.

“I know I didn’t make a jump shot when I was with Team USA,” the Celtics star said. told the New York Times“I don’t know, it’s the law of averages. It’s a weird rhythm being with Team USA; you never know exactly when you’re going to get the ball. But it’s part of the game. You commit to it because I’ve done it before (at the Tokyo Games).”

The move follows U.S. coach Steve Kerr’s decision to bench Tatum for both games against Serbia, which drew backlash from fans and the media. Kerr later explained that his decision was due to the short duration of Olympic basketball games (40 minutes) and the need to balance an 11-man roster during that time.

“In the age of social media, you see everything,” Tatum told The New York Times. “You see all the tweets, people on podcasts and on TV giving their opinion on the decision they made, how it was made or what it was. Obviously, I wanted to contribute more, and I never found myself in that position.”

While he also helped Team USA win gold at the 2020 Games, the Celtics champion played 11 minutes in the final against France and scored 21 points in four Olympic games. Tatum also averaged 5.3 points per game and 17.7 minutes per game.

“I think everybody knows JT, he’s a consummate professional,” Celtics teammate Jrue Holiday said Wednesday. “He already knows what this is and what his ultimate goal is.”

Holiday will join Tatum and Derrick White, who also played for Team USA, as the Celtics face the Nuggets in their preseason opener on October 4.