Jayson Tatum‘s mother, Brandy Cole-Barnes, has opened up about the emotional toll of watching her son endure harsh media scrutiny throughout his career, revealing the challenges of being a parent to one of the NBA’s most scrutinized stars. In the Netflix series Starting 5, she shared her frustration over the negative narratives surrounding Tatum, who has faced criticism despite leading the Boston Celtics to an NBA Championship in 2024. As Tatum himself acknowledged, dealing with constant blame, with the Boston Globe claiming he “flopped on the NBA’s biggest stage”, along with public doubt, has been a persistent challenge in his seven-year career.

In Starting 5’s fifth episode, Brandy Cole-Barnes shared her frustrations, saying, “So, a lot of times, it’s difficult to be able to … emotionally, to be able to watch and know statistical numbers, and then still hear people get on TV and, you know, talk about your son like a dog, or make it seem like, you know, he’s not as good as he is. And then you’re looking at the numbers like, ‘Make it make sense’”, expressing how the media’s narrative often contradicts her son’s performance.

Tatum echoed his mother’s sentiments, stating, “Sports media is tough. When we lose, it’s my fault. It’s hard to explain that or have other guys on the team understand. Like, nobody can prepare you on how to deal with that”.

During the playoffs, Tatum faced unusual scrutiny when ESPN’s Get Up! questioned whether he was genuinely happy about Jaylen Brown winning the Eastern Conference Finals MVP title. This speculation stemmed from a smile Tatum gave during Brown’s acceptance. However, several figures, including newly appointed Lakers Head Coach JJ Redick, came to Tatum’s defense, dismissing the criticism as mere “nit-picking.”

Tatum silenced critics when he and Jaylen Brown led the Celtics to their first NBA Championship since 2008. After years of being called the “most scrutinized player,” Tatum finally expressed his relief: “These last seven years have been a roller coaster, up and down. I had to listen to all the s–t that people said about me, and tonight, it was worth it. Oh my God”. 

Unfortunately, his moment of finally getting redemption didn’t last long. After all, the Paris Olympics came up only a few months after the NBA Finals, bringing a new issue between him and a prominent head coach.

“Steve’s all about winning” – Divides Emerge Over Steve Kerr’s Decision to Bench Jayson Tatum in Olympics

Going into the 2024 Paris Olympics, Jayson Tatum had finally secured the championship title and shown just how far his capabilities could take him. Consequently, expectations were high for him to play a significant role on the Team USA squad. Unfortunately, it was the same squad that included stars LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant. Faced with a tough choice, head coach Steve Kerr severely limited Tatum’s on-court minutes. Out of the six games, he sat out for two, including Team USA’s campaign opener against Serbia. Even in the games he appeared, Tatum was only able to average 17.7 minutes. By the end of the Gold Medal run, while LeBron James and Stephen Curry accumulated 147 and 140 minutes respectively, Tatum only had 71 minutes.

In the aftermath of the ‘snub’, many came to Jayson Tatum’s defense. Despite Jaylen Brown’s recent trolling, ESPN sportscaster Stephen A. Smith stated, “If there’s somebody who deserves to celebrate the gold medal the least, it would be Steve Kerr. What he did to Jayson Tatum was unconscionable.” American Rapper Vince Staples took to social media to write “WE WILL AVENGE JAYSON TATUM”, which the player himself would later reshare. At the same time, however, several others also came to Kerr’s defense. Doug Gottlieb went against Smith and said that the latter calling Kerr’s action ‘disrespectful’ is “f—–g ridiculous.” Kevon Looney went on Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson’s show to say “Steve’s all about winning. He’s going to do all the necessary things to win, and he did win.”

Jayson Tatum cannot seem to catch a break anywhere he goes. However, one main thing has changed between the current year and the previous six years of his NBA career. As the player himself stated, “There’s still conversations to be had or whatever people want to say, but they’ve always got to refer to me as an NBA champion.”

Before you go, remember to check out this crossover between BG12 and Georgia Bulldogs star Silas Demary Jr.