Team USA did exactly what everyone thought they would do. They sought redemption for the 2023 FIBA World Cup embarrassment. And it wasn’t just any ordinary business. The Big 3 put up a once-in-an-era performance and conveniently collected their country’s 17th gold medal. While LeBron, Steph, and KD took center stage, others apart from Ant and Booker, were barely recognized. However, Jayson Tatum constantly made the headlines over his DNP controversy. It certainly blew out of proportion, as he continued to get minimal game time. Nevertheless, a media veteran has squashed this debate recently with a unique argument.

It was a media debate until Jayson Tatum directly involved himself in the discourse. Following the Gold glory, everyone expressed their wishes and shared pictures on social media. While JT also did the same, he further added a controversial layer to the story. The Celt reshared a tweet from rapper Vince Staples that read, “WE WILL AVENGE JAYSON TATUM.” With this, he publicly showed restraint for Steve Kerr’s coaching and tactical decisions.

Following that, the debate picked up pace, with more polarizing takes. Especially, Fox Sports’ Rob Parker definitely wasn’t happy with the way things went with JT. However, his co-host Martin Weiss countered him, saying, “I cannot shed a tear for Jayson Tatum not getting minutes over two of the Mount Rushmore players of this era.” However, Rob immediately countered this point. “It’s not about minutes, the number of minutes. Instead, he got no minutes!”

To which Weiss argumentatively asked whether the critics would be happy if JT got 2 minutes of playing time over no minutes. However, Parker believed that the Celt deserved much more. His co-host then brought in Jayson Tatum’s poor display, “Why, when he’s not when he’s not shooting well he has shot well all through the Easter Conference playoffs? He didn’t shoot well all through the Olympics,” Weiss said on The Odd Couple pod. Data tells us that JT’s shooting accuracy from deep dropped by 9.3% in the playoffs, considering a substantial 19-game postseason sample set.

Parker immediately hit back, pointing his finger at Joel Embiid, who certainly took time to find his rhythm in the tournament. In response, Weiss said, “If Jason Tatum was 7 feet tall and 300 pounds and could guard Nikola Jokić, he would have got on the court,” and also reminded him of the game when Steve Kerr benched him. Even then Rob Parker didn’t seem to budge, and Weiss put forward a question in return, seeking clarity about whose minutes should have been taken away then. For which the vet never had an answer.

Did Steve Kerr actually snub Jayson Tatum?

Well, there is no definite answer to the controversial question. However, during an episode of Gils Arena, Gilbert Arenas, and his crew accused Steve Kerr of favoring Stephen Curry because of his Dubs affiliation. This accusation hinted that Kerr deliberately benched JT during the Olympics. However, Curry shut down the critics with two back-to-back explosive performances at the end.

On the other hand, Jayson Tatum struggled to make an impact on the court within the given minutes. In the six games, Kerr benched him for two games, and in the remaining games, he played at an average of 17.7 minutes, which is more than Tyrese Haliburton and Derrick White. Moreover, he didn’t make the most of it, as he struggled with an average stat line of 5.3 points, shooting 38% from the field.

Above all, speaking of his decision, Steve Kerr clarified, “It’s not what I’m not seeing from Jayson; it’s what I’ve seen from the other guys… It’s just hard to play 11 people, even in an NBA game… It’s a math problem more than anything,” ignoring the chatter from all the critics, including his very own Bay Area star, Draymond Green.

Notably, Steve Kerr specifically praised Devin Booker for his performance despite the domination of the Big 3, after the emphatic Final triumph against France, which made matters even worse. What do you make of the controversy? Let us know in the comments.

Before leaving, do watch the Dual Threat Show hosted by BG12 where Bulldogs’ Asia Avinger details her experience with Kobe Bryant, her WNBA ROTY picks, and more in the video below.