Talking about Jaylen Brown’s snub is a ‘no win situation’ for Jayson Tatum, ESPN analyst says
"There is no right answer."
Jayson Tatum did not look comfortable when asked about how he felt not having Jaylen Brown with him at Team USA practice.
He said that he hadn’t spoken to Brown since the decision to leave Brown off the Olympic team was announced. He said that there were a lot of players that could have taken the spot, but ultimately said that it was tough not having Brown there.
With three Celtics on the roster and Brown left off the team, it would not be surprising if more questions followed about why the reigning Finals MVP is not there.
ESPN analyst Seth Greenberg explained that Tatum is in a tough spot no matter how he tries to answer the question.
“The dude is in a no-win situation. Think about the context,” Greenberg said. “He probably just finished practice. He’s walking off the court, finished with his shower, trying to get to the bus, trying to get back to the hotel and he’s thrown this question.”
“And you know what?” Greenberg added. “If you look at what he says at the end of the interview, he says yeah it is. So, we can analyze it any way that we want, there is no right answer. What did you want him to say?”
Brown posted a few tweets that did not mention Team USA by name, but did seem critical of the selection process. He also tweeted at Nike, saying “@nike this what we doing?”
Tatum is in a tricky spot because showing support for Brown can be seen as a slight towards Derrick White, and not showing support for Brown isn’t the greatest look.
“He’s got two teammates,” Greenberg said. “One of them made it, the other one didn’t make it. Obviously, Brown is disappointed. So, you put a player in a situation that he’s uncomfortable with because he doesn’t know the right answer.”
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