The Warriors and Celtics will face off for the first time since Steve Kerr kept Jayson Tatum warming the bench for the whole Paris Olympics campaign.
No doubt it will be a tall task for the Warriors to defeat the Celtics at TD Garden and Kerr will get a very healthy reception full of boos.
Speaking ahead of the matchup, Kerr said he didnt enjoy using Tatum in the way he did, but it isnt something thats stayed with him.
We cant control the story, Kerr said. Thats this job. I tell our players all the time, the NBA is incredibly popular, and the reason its so lucrative and a part of the deal is youre gonna be in the story. So that can be tough. But from the beginning (of Olympic training camp) in Vegas, the whole thing was were in this together. Weve got 12 Hall of Famers, and were just committed to winning, and we won a gold medal.
So, I dont give it a whole lot of thought other than that I didnt enjoy not playing Jayson against Serbia, not playing Joel (Embiid) against South Sudan. Those are not fun decisions. But our guys were all amazing. They committed to each other. They committed to winning a gold medal. They brought the gold home for their country. They all handled themselves with incredible dignity and class. Thats the real story. But we live in a time where we have to talk about stuff that doesnt actually matter.
Stephen A. Smith blasted out at Kerr over his treatment of the Celtics star on First Take.
To do what he did to Jayson Tatum, I hope Jayson Tatum embarrassed him, I hope they destroy, Im not rooting against the Warriors, Im just talking about Jayson Tatum going on there and putting on a show, said Smith. Because remember last point, Steph Curry was awful until the semifinals of the Olympics, he couldnt buy a shot, but you stuck with him. Why? Because dammit thats Steph Curry, we know what hes going to do eventually, we know how phenomenal and great he is and you know it because you coach it all the time. So eventually hes going to find his groove, you stuck it out. Jayson Tatum can play 4 positions man, you couldnt find minutes for him in a game?
Will Tatum get his revenge tonight?
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