Jayson Tatum Says Limited Role In Paris Olympics Won’t Affect 2028 Decision

NBA star Jayson Tatum said his limited role for Team USA this summer will not affect his decision to play for the national team in 2028. 

“It was a tough personal experience on the court, but I’m not going to make any decision off emotions,” Tatum said, via ESPN. “If you asked me right now if I was going to play in 2028 — it is four years from now and I [would have] to take time and think about that. So I’m not going to make any decision based off how this experience was or how I felt individually.”

Tatum didn’t play in two of the six games in the Olympics, including the semifinal victory over Serbia. The Boston Celtics forward is one of the best players in the NBA, but he didn’t get to showcase his skills this summer for Team USA. 

“A lot of people text me and reached out and said ‘Make sure this fuels you,’ which I appreciate. There’s a lot of people that care about me,” Tatum said. “I think the tough part is yes, you can use things to fuel you, but I’m still human.

“Part of being in the moment, I’ve sacrificed and put a lot into this game and work really, really hard. So in the moment it is tough. You’re not necessarily worried about fueling me for November or [whenever] the season is, but like I said, it’s something I’m going to take away from this and learn from this experience. It’s definitely challenging and humbling at the same time.”

Team USA beat France in the gold medal game.

Tatum, who won his first NBA championship this year, has won two gold medals with Team USA. 

A five-time NBA All-Star, Tatum has career averages of 23.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.7 blocks with the Celtics.