NBA Legend Carmelo Anthony Makes Honest Statement on Jayson Tatum's Team USA Benching

Denver Nuggets legend Carmelo Anthony reacted to the Jayson Tatum situation at the Paris Olympics

Aug 10, 2024; Paris, France; Carmelo Anthony cheers in the second half against France in the men's basketball gold medal game during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Accor Arena. / Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports

After winning his first NBA championship, Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum followed that with a gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics. While this was a lot of winning for Tatum who also signed a five-year, $315M extension this summer, the Olympics did not go as planned.

Playing the second-fewest minutes on Team USA at the Olympics, Tatum had two games where he did not play at all. This included the semifinals game against Paris when Steve Kerr shortened his rotation after giving Tatum some more minutes in the previous games.

Reacting to this on the latest episode of his 7PM in Brooklyn podcast, Denver Nuggets legend Carmelo Anthony spoke on Tatum's situation and how he handled it.

"They wanted him to do what Devin Booker did," Anthony said of Tatum. "Be a stretch four, space the court, play some defense, and that’s it. But if you’re not told what’s your role and you just told to figure it out, right now if I get in the game I’m overthinking. We're humans, too. Basketball players are human, athletes are human."

Anthony said he understood the roster crunch Kerr was dealing with, but would have preferred to see the Tatum situation managed differently. That said, Anthony praised Tatum for how he handled it.

United States forward LeBron James (6) and forward Jayson Tatum (10) in the first half against Brazil in a men’s basketball quarterfinal game during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Accor Arena. / Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

"I want these young athletes out here to know s--t is real out here," Anthony said. "... This man has one of the best resumes over the four or five years out of any player in any sport. What he went through I want everybody to see that s--t like that s--t hurt to go through that on national television around the world... He was resilient. He stood there and the world knows that he’s f--king pissed."

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