Tyrese Haliburton Shares Theory for Why Jayson Tatum Gets So Much 'Hate'

Haliburton does not agree with the criticism toward Tatum.

Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) holds the ball while Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton. / Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

With LeBron James, Steph Curry, and Kevin Durant approaching the latter stages of their NBA careers, there have been increasing conversations on who should be the next face of the league.

Despite winning a championship and consistently performing as one of the top players in the league, Celtics forward Jayson Tatum is often overlooked as one of the faces of the NBA.

Not only can Tatum be overlooked despite his impressive success for his age, but also he receives an unusual amount of criticism. It has gone so far that Tatum opened up to The Washington Post about not feeling appreciated in the league.

"If you took the name and the face away from all my accomplishments and you’re just like, ‘This is what Player A accomplished at 26,’ people would talk about [me] a lot differently," Tatum said.

Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton theorizes that Tatum could be on the receiving end of this hate and criticism in part because of the teams he has played for—Duke and the Celtics.

"I think part of it could be he went to Duke and he plays on the Celtics, two polarizing teams," Haliburton said Thursday on The Pat McAfee Show.

"I think the Jayson Tatum hate is unwarranted and he's an elite player in our league..

He's a good dude and I don't really understand it..

He has the respect from his peers"@TyHaliburton22 #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/vYXKHXq5x1

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) February 27, 2025

Even so, Haliburton does not agree with those views of Tatum and insists that he is respected by his peers.

"I think it's unwarranted," Haliburton. "He's an elite player in our league. He's the best player on the best team in the NBA coming off a championship. It's not right for the hate that he gets. ... Jayson's a good dude. He's got a shoe, he's elite, he's got everything. I don't really understand it. He has the respect from his peers and I think that means more than anything ... We know when we play Boston you gotta be ready and game plan around Jayson Tatum."

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