How Jrue Holiday Felt About Jayson Tatum’s Olympic Benching

Celtics fans were outraged to see how Steve Kerr utilized Jayson Tatum during the Paris Olympics, but one of his teammates took a different tone.

Tatum featured in all but two of Team USA’s games during its gold medal run. Those games were against Serbia, and Kerr highlighted a “math” issue when it came to his rotations. That excuse baffled Boston fans and franchise legends. However, Tatum’s Celtics and Olympic teammate Jrue Holiday didn’t seem too irked about the decision.

“I think everybody knows JT — he’s the ultimate professional,” Holiday told reporters Wednesday, per Noa Dalzell of CLNS. “He already knows what it is and what the ultimate goal is. I don’t think he needed any encouragement. I think it’s more so like staying ready whenever it’s his time to be called.”

Tatum received minutes in Team USA’s other games, but fans felt the Celtics star was disrespected and overlooked due to his impressive résumé after winning his first NBA championship.

Jaylen Brown didn’t hesitate to take any shots over his Team USA roster snub or Tatum’s benching. The summer drama could end up benefitting Boston by motivating it for its repeat run, which could explain the team’s subdued reaction.