Jayson Tatum's Former Boston Celtics Teammate Calls Out Steve Kerr

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum did not play in USA vs. Serbia

Jul 10, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; USA head coach Steve Kerr speaks to a player on the bench in the fourth quarter against Canada in the USA Basketball Showcase at T-Mobile Arena. | Candice Ward-USA TODAY Sports

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr is also the head coach for USA Basketball. Tasked with the difficult rotation decisions that a roster with this much talent brings, Kerr chose not to play Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum in Sunday's Paris Olympics opener against Serbia.

With Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant returning from injury and playing great, Kerr kept Tatum on the bench for the game's entirety. According to Kerr, Tatum handled the decision well.

"I went with the combinations that made sense," Kerr told reporters after the game. "That was for tonight. He handled it well. He’ll make his mark."

Kerr admits Tatum was a straight up DNP-CD. “I went with the combinations that made sense. That was for tonight. He handled it well. He’ll make his mark.” #Celtics #Paris2024
— gary washburn (@GwashburnGlobe) July 28, 2024

While USA won the game in convincing fashion, many still disagree with Kerr's decision to not play Tatum at all. This include's Tatum's former Boston Celtics teammate Theo Pinson, who called on Kerr in a post on X.

"The explanation for JT not playing was flat out sad… A guy like JT you FIND a way to get him on the floor and honestly it’s not a hard thing to do smh s--t is sad," Pinson wrote.

The explanation for JT not playing was flat out sad…. A guy like JT you FIND a way to get him on the floor and honestly it’s not a hard thing to do smh shit is sad
— Theo pinson (@tpinsonn) July 28, 2024

Spending five seasons in the NBA, Pinson has spent time with the Brooklyn Nets, New York Knicks, and Dallas Mavericks, and was teammates with Tatum during the Celtics' 2021 training camp.

Celtics formally announce their training camp roster.

Ryan Arcidiacono, Garrison Mathews, Theo Pinson, and Juwan Morgan the initial batch of camp invites with Celtics at camp roster max of 20. pic.twitter.com/2ITnhIb7Dx
— Chris Forsberg (@ChrisForsberg_) September 28, 2021

Pinson was waived after camp and never appeared in a regular season game for Boston, but did form relationships with different players on that team, including Tatum. Disagreeing with Kerr's decision, Pinson made that clear in his post.

Draymond Green Fires Back at NBA Legend's Outlandish Warriors Statement

Major Update on Golden State Warriors' Offseason Plans Revealed

Warriors Star Gets Honest About Being Teammates With Draymond

Related Articles