Fact Check: Did A Team USA Player Disrespect Jayson Tatum By Asking Him Why He Was Even Stretching?

The USA men’s basketball team had an impressive two-week campaign at the 2024 Olympics. While LeBron James and co. went undefeated and bagged the gold medal, the victory wasn’t as sweet or memorable for every player on the squad. A few players found themselves benched for entire games. This fact sparked rumors circulating on social media, particularly involving Jayson Tatum.

According to a post on X, a certain player disrespected a player in Team USA disrespected Tatum and took a shot at the Boston Celtics star by mockingly asking him about stretching during warmups. This implied that the particular player was teasing JT for not receiving any playing time.

The anonymous player asked, per the post, “Why you stretching?”

This post has gained significant traction, amassing 1.5 million views in just seven hours. It was shared by a popular parody account, NBA Centel, which frequently impersonates the reputable NBA Central and tricks many fans with fake news. As expected, this story also turned out to be false.

The 2024 All-NBA First Team player was a DNP in both of the matchups against Serbia. However, his performance in the remaining four games wasn’t exceptional. Tatum played 17.7 minutes per game and finished with 5.3 points and 1.5 assists per game on 38.1% FG.

Additionally, the 2024 champ’s mother also chimed in on the topic and vented out her disappointment with the lack of playing time that the 6ft 8” forward was subjected to. Brandy took to X and was baffled by Steve Kerr’s decision to keep her son benched.

“No he not (injured). But if you find out what’s going on please let me know – unacceptable and makes NO SENSE.”

Tatum was one of just two players who didn’t see any playing time in two separate games. Unlike Tyrese Haliburton, who didn’t appear too bothered by it, JT was visibly frustrated. While the rest of the bench remained lively and supportive, Tatum’s enthusiasm noticeably waned.