Jaylen Brown shares thoughts on Jayson Tatum Team USA benchings

Rather than praising the Boston Celtics for bringing home Banner 18, the discourse surrounding the team this summer was full of drama, and Team USA Basketball was at the center of it all.

Jaylen Brown didn’t crack the roster even when Kawhi Leonard was sent home. Derrick White was named as the replacement instead. As for Jayson Tatum, he was fully benched in two of the team’s six games. And in the others, head coach Steve Kerr barely gave him any playing time.

Tatum maintained a team-first approach throughout the summer, and now, he and Brown will enter next season in hopes of delivering Boston another championship. And Brown is confident in his teammate’s ability to move forward.

Jaylen Brown discusses Jayson Tatum getting benched by Team USA

During a recent interview with NBC Sports Bay Area, Brown said that Tatum will be fine. (H/t Gio Rivera of NESN)

"I didn’t have too many comments. I don’t have any comments right now… Jayson will be fine. Jayson Tatum will be fine. We will be fine."

- Jaylen Brown on Jayson Tatum

In his four appearances at the 2024 Olympics, Tatum averaged 5.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.5 assists while shooting 38.1% from the field and 0-of-4 from beyond the three-point line. He played 17.7 minutes per game.

Sixteen years after winning their 17th title in franchise history, the Celtics brought home another, but they aren’t done yet. Led by Tatum, Brown, Joe Mazzulla, and the rest of the team, the only thing in their sights now is Banner 19.

While Tatum and Brown may not be the type of players to directly call others out or express their frustrations publicly, they will undoubtedly be using this summer’s drama as fuel moving forward. Whether it be Tatum dominating Kerr’s Golden State Warriors or Brown taking it upon himself to prove Grant Hill wrong, the Celtics will have a huge chip on their shoulders.

The rest of the Eastern Conference has been beefing up in hopes of contending with Boston. The New York Knicks traded for Mikal Bridges, and the Philadelphia 76ers signed Paul George.

However, the Celtics brought back the same roster they had last season, almost to a tee. Outside of Svi Mykhailiuk and Oshae Brissett, who were effectively replaced by rookies Baylor Scheierman and Anton Watson, Boston will have the exact same personnel as last year.

And with a determined Tatum and Brown leading the way, they are in a great spot.