Jayson Tatum offers NSFW message to fans still trolling him for being benched at the Olympics

“People want me to be louder, people want me to be meaner, whatever,” Tatum said

NBA star Jayson Tatum still gets trolling comments about being benched at the Paris Olympics – and he had an explicit response for fans who won’t let it go.

In a post-game interview after he and the Boston Celtics lost 118-112 to the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday, Nov. 6, Tatum, 26, shared how he really feels about the endless backlash months after the Olympics ended, per Sports illustrated.

“I mean, that’s part of this job, that’s what I’ve been doing my entire career. People want me to be louder, people want me to be meaner, whatever. One thing about Jayson is I will always do what I want to do,” Tatum said.

“People who react differently, it’s easy to say what they would do if they were in my shoes,” he continued. “I appreciate it when it comes from a good place, but like I said, I’m always going to respond, respond. approach things the way I want.”

Related: Jayson Tatum would like to play basketball for Team USA in the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris (Exclusive)

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Team USA coach Steve Kerr — who is also the head coach of the Warriors — spoke before Wednesday’s game about why he benched Tatum during the men’s basketball semifinal against Serbia, which the U.S. ultimately won 95-91 to to secure their place in gold. medal final.

Related: Jayson Tatum’s Son Deuce Runs Onto Court To Hug Dad After Celtics Win 2024 NBA Finals

“We don’t control the narrative,” Kerr said. “So that’s what this job is. I tell our players all the time that the NBA is incredibly popular, and the reason it’s so lucrative and part of the deal is that you’ll be part of the story. So that can be difficult. But from the beginning in Vegas, we were meant to be in this together.”

“We have 12 Hall of Famers and we just want to win, and we won a gold medal,” he continued. “So I don’t think much about it, other than I didn’t like not playing Jayson against Serbia, not playing Joel against South Sudan. Those are not fun decisions.”

However, fans in Boston made it clear on Wednesday that they were on Tatum’s side by loudly booing Kerr during pre-game introductions.

The Boston Celtics next face the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, November 8.