Count Boston Celtics legend Bob Cousy among those perplexed and dismayed about how Jayson Tatum is being used by Team USA head coach Steve Kerr at the Paris Summer Olympics.
Tatum, for whatever reason, has been a DNP: coach's decision in two of Team USA's five games, failing to log a single minute in a group-play win over Serbia and then again in a rematch Thursday in the semifinals. The decision to bench Tatum, arguably one of the five best players in the world, is a curious one at best, and Bob Cousy isn't taking it quietly.
"This isn't just a snub. This is an embarrassment for that poor kid all over the (expletive) world," the Hall of Famer told The Boston Globe. "The Olympics have gotten that big. Everyone's going to think that there's something wrong with the kid."
Cousy also believes at this point "this is going out of your way to embarrass your players," which obviously is a massive claim against Kerr, one of the NBA's top coaches.
What really befuddled Cousy is how Kerr didn't even call Tatum's number when Serbia built a 17-point lead in the semis.
"And then to not let Tatum get off the bench -- to me, there's got to be some kind of bias he's got against the Celtics. He's not alone there."
Cousy is Mr. Celtic, so he's got his own bias that certainly propel these sorts of claims. Given what we just saw from Tatum this past season, leading his team to an NBA title, it's head-scratching to see Tatum stapled to the bench.
We might never really get a satisfactory answer, either, but the criticisms from Cousy -- and others -- no doubt will intensify if Tatum's playing time is limited once again when the Americans go for gold Saturday against France.
