In this episode of the Big 3 NBA Podcast, we dive deep into the implications of Jayson Tatum's limited role with Team USA during the Olympics and how it could spark a "revenge tour" for him and Jaylen Brown in the upcoming NBA season. Despite the team's success, Tatum's minimal contributions have left him feeling disrespected, and analysts believe this will fuel his determination to prove his worth on the court. With the Celtics returning intact and a shared sense of urgency, both stars are poised to dominate and reclaim their status among the league's elite. Join us as we explore how Tatum's experiences could transform him into a more vocal leader and what this means for the Celtics' championship aspirations. Don't miss our insights on how this unique motivation might shape their season and impact their performance against rivals like the New York Knicks!
0:00 - Intro
1:00 - Tatum's Olympic performance
2:49 - Tatum's limited opportunity
5:49 - Team USA relationship issues
9:57 - Tatum's shooting struggles
12:24 - Kerr's confidence issues
14:10 - Tatum's MVP potential
18:00 - Tatum's revenge tour
19:51 - Tatum's coming out party
22:50 - Angry Tatum emerges
24:44 - Major motivation for players
27:09 - Jayson needs to rest
29:57 - Added motivation ahead
34:00 - Gary's Paris experience
37:44 - Covering the Olympics
39:50 - Yabusele's NBA comeback
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0:00 - Intro
1:00 - Tatum's Olympic performance
2:49 - Tatum's limited opportunity
5:49 - Team USA relationship issues
9:57 - Tatum's shooting struggles
12:24 - Kerr's confidence issues
14:10 - Tatum's MVP potential
18:00 - Tatum's revenge tour
19:51 - Tatum's coming out party
22:50 - Angry Tatum emerges
24:44 - Major motivation for players
27:09 - Jayson needs to rest
29:57 - Added motivation ahead
34:00 - Gary's Paris experience
37:44 - Covering the Olympics
39:50 - Yabusele's NBA comeback
CLNS Media is Powered by:
Prize Picks - PrizePicks.com/CLNS
Download the app today and use code CLNS for a first deposit match up to $100!
Gametime - https://gametime.co
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Elevate your style game on and off the course with the PXG Spring Summer 2024 collection. Head over to https://PXG.com/GARDENREPORT and save 10% on all apparel.
Nutrafol Men! Take the first step to visibly thicker, healthier hair. For a limited time, Nutrafol is offering our listeners ten dollars off your first month’s subscription and free shipping when you go to https://Nutrafol.com/MEN and enter the promo code GARDEN!
#celtics #NBA #BostonCeltics
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SportsTranscript
00:00The Big 3 NBA podcast is powered by PrizePix and the Game Time app.
00:25Hello everyone, welcome to the Big 3 NBA podcast.
00:27A'Shawn Blakely, Gary Washburn, Quanie Lunas here, and off the win of Team USA,
00:33both on the men and women's side, America bringing home gold again.
00:37But we're talking about the men's game specifically because, of course, it
00:41affects the Boston Celtics, Steph Curry, Shef Curring at 24 points, eight made
00:46threes, Kevin Durant, 15, LeBron James, 14, 10, and 6, Olympic hoop MVP as well.
00:53And we can talk about LeBron and what does this mean for his legacy?
00:56Because that's always the conversation.
00:58But let's honestly just get right into Jason Tatum.
01:01He played 11 minutes, had two points, three rebounds, one steal.
01:05But obviously, we've been following the fact that he didn't see as many minutes
01:10as he expected in this Olympic season.
01:13So what did you two think about, one, his answer, Gary, I'm sure you were there
01:18when he talked about what 2028 would potentially look like.
01:22Do you think he would reconsider playing for Team USA?
01:26Go ahead, Gary.
01:27You talk to the man.
01:30I mean, I think he's not going to make an emotional decision.
01:33It's four years from now.
01:35It's a long, long time.
01:36He'll be 30 by then.
01:38I think he's got a lot on his mind.
01:40He did not play his best basketball for Team USA.
01:42Let's just be honest.
01:44He was not good.
01:45He hit jump shots.
01:47He was thinking too much, in my opinion.
01:50But did he get a chance to work himself through it?
01:52No, he didn't.
01:54Steph Curry wasn't good until the semifinals.
01:57And then he turned into the greatest shooter of all time.
02:01And he had 17 threes in the last two games.
02:03And he carried Team USA to victory.
02:06But he was going to get ample opportunity,
02:09as was many other guys on the roster, to break out of their little slump.
02:13Jason really didn't get that opportunity.
02:16And also, he didn't play selfishly either.
02:19If you look at a guy like Anthony Edwards, Anthony,
02:22when he got into the game, I'm going to go for mine.
02:24I'm going to get my buckets.
02:25Jason was trying to play team ball.
02:28It didn't result in any substantive numbers.
02:32And he just didn't look comfortable out there.
02:35He was the second best player in Team USA in 2021 at the Olympics in Tokyo.
02:39I was there for that.
02:40Him and Durant.
02:41Durant was number one.
02:42He was number two.
02:42He had a couple of big shots in that gold medal game against France.
02:46This time, it just wasn't his time.
02:48And whether he'll review his whole relationship with Team USA,
02:54whether this will motivate him for the upcoming season,
02:57I just think it's a tough time.
02:59He might have been tired, too.
03:01I mean, coming off the championship, not much rest.
03:05Obviously, family and friends there.
03:09It looks like he just had a second child with his girlfriend Ella Mae.
03:17That's got to play into it.
03:19So maybe a level of exhaustion for Tatum.
03:22I think we expect these guys to be superhuman.
03:24He's 26.
03:25He's never supposed to get tired.
03:27Maybe he was just tired.
03:29And then when you put KD and LeBron on the team, Jason's going to shrink.
03:35He's not going to get the spotlight.
03:38And Curry and Embiid.
03:39So I think it's a matter of just him being in a bad situation,
03:44definitely not playing his best basketball, especially offensively,
03:48and just being in the circumstances where, as we saw,
03:51Steve Kerr really liked Devin Booker.
03:53And I think that was something that maybe
03:55caught everybody by surprise, that he really, really liked playing
04:00Devin Booker in those situations.
04:02And I'm sure that affected Jason, too.
04:05Gary, I don't want to make any excuses or even go deep
04:10into why Tatum didn't play well.
04:12To me, it came down to opportunity.
04:14He did not get an opportunity to work himself
04:17into being an impact player the way a lot of other guys on that team did.
04:21Durant had the one really good game after missing some games.
04:24But he had a number of duds, too.
04:27Steph Curry, as you pointed out, was not very good at the start.
04:30Anthony Edwards came in there shot chucking.
04:32And yes, there were some games where he was absolutely that guy.
04:36But there were some games where he was just basically shot chucking
04:39and not really making an impact at the other end of the floor.
04:41And you start looking around, and all the guys around Tatum,
04:44they each had moments where they were able to break through
04:48because they had an opportunity.
04:49They didn't worry about playing three, four, five minutes, and that's it.
04:54Tatum either didn't play or played a very limited role.
04:57And that's unusual for a guy that young who already had experience
05:04at the Olympics, had proven himself on that grandest of stages
05:08to not get that opportunity.
05:09It's odd.
05:10As far as whether he's going to return to Team USA when they come to LA in 2028,
05:15I think that this, between now and then, there's
05:17going to have to be some bridge rebuilding on the part of Team USA
05:21with Jason and not the other way around.
05:22Because Tatum has established himself as one of the best players in the NBA.
05:27I don't think there's any doubt about that.
05:29What he experienced is more about Team USA
05:33than it is about any shortcoming in his game.
05:35Because you're right, Gary.
05:37He did not play great.
05:38But considering the amount of minutes that he was allotted,
05:41you put any one of those other guys in that same situation,
05:44they're probably not going to play as well either.
05:46And it gets to the point where when you're a player of his caliber
05:50and you've had the kind of success that Jason Tatum has
05:52had throughout the course of his career,
05:54there's an unspoken but expected level of opportunity
05:59that you feel that you have earned.
06:01And he did not get that.
06:03There's no doubt about that.
06:04And so I do think that he will play in 2028.
06:07But I do think between now and then, Team USA is going to have to make it right.
06:12Or not make it right, make it better than it was.
06:14Because Tatum, I can tell you right now, he's going to have to...
06:18I think his situation in many ways, Gary,
06:20because you brought this up in an earlier conversation we had.
06:23I think in many ways it'll be similar to Joel Embiid as far as
06:27no matter how you play,
06:28there are going to be certain unspoken but understood guarantees
06:32that you're going to get if you join our team.
06:35I think Tatum is going to be in that position
06:37because for Tatum to not be given an opportunity
06:42to play a significant role in 2028,
06:46that's a major problem for Team USA.
06:49And it speaks to some of the issues that Jalen Brown has talked about,
06:52about how it's very cliquish.
06:55But we'll talk about this a little bit later on.
06:58But if you're Celtics fans,
07:00you are absolutely just pumping your fists right now
07:04to see this happen to Jason.
07:05Because I don't care what Jason told y'all in Paris,
07:09that brother is coming back with a list.
07:12He will have a list of players, teams, coaches,
07:17Steve Kerr at the top of that list
07:18that he will be looking to put in the crosshairs
07:22of his offensive assault this season.
07:25There's no way that Tatum is going to go into the season thinking,
07:28oh, I'm just going to try to be better.
07:29Oh, hell no.
07:30It ain't about being better.
07:31It's about blasting all the fools
07:34who kept you on the end of the bench,
07:36forcing you to be the Olympic version of ML Carr,
07:40waving your flag, cheering on these other cats.
07:43Oh, hell no.
07:44Well, I've got to say, though,
07:47like, you've got to look at the numbers, Sherrod and Kwame.
07:51Okay, if you look at the production, okay?
07:55Three-point shooting.
07:57Okay, Steph Curry, 47, 48%.
08:00Kevin Durant, 52%.
08:03Devin Booker, 56%.
08:05Anthony Davis was 50%.
08:07He didn't take a lot.
08:08Anthony Edwards, 48%.
08:11Like, Drew Holiday, 50% for three.
08:14Joel Embiid, 54%.
08:16Jason, zero, right?
08:18He didn't take any.
08:20How about minutes played?
08:2217.7.
08:23He missed a game, so he missed two games without question.
08:28But if you compare the numbers between, let's say,
08:30Anthony Edwards, who played less minutes per game,
08:33Anthony took three more shots,
08:35but he was also hitting those shots.
08:3758% from the field in the Olympics, 68% on twos.
08:42Jason was 38% from the field in the Olympics,
08:4647% on twos, which was lowest on the team.
08:51So Jason's got to fix his jump shot.
08:53Like, that's another thing, too.
08:55This is not all on Steve Curry.
08:57I'm not supporting what happened with Jason.
08:59He should have been playing every game,
09:01but he averaged less points.
09:05Derek White averaged less points because Derek White
09:07didn't take a lot of shots.
09:08Jason took 5.3 shots per game in his time out there compared
09:14to, let's say, Anthony Edwards, who took 8.4,
09:16who played less minutes.
09:17Anthony was getting them up.
09:18But the shorter three-point line, a lot of guys
09:22took advantage of that, obviously,
09:24because if you people say, well, Booker,
09:26Booker was 57% from the field for the Olympics, 56 from three.
09:32Like, that's very good, right?
09:36Anthony Davis, let's talk about 50%.
09:38Anthony Edwards took 48.
09:40So a lot of Drew took three three-point.
09:43Jason only took one three-pointer per appearance.
09:47He missed them all.
09:48He was 0 for 4.
09:50So he just wasn't himself.
09:51He wasn't taking shots.
09:53And then the shots he's taking, he
09:55was not hitting them.
09:57Why do you think that it was, though, Gary?
09:59Why do you think he?
10:00I think that he's tired.
10:01I think seeing him, I think he was hesitating.
10:04He was thinking too much.
10:05He was trying too hard.
10:07He was 8 for 21 in the Olympics, 0 for 4 from three.
10:11Like, some of those shots, he missed some layups.
10:14Some he made some turnovers.
10:17Defensively, he was solid.
10:19Rebounding, he was solid.
10:21So he had 21 overall rebounds in the four games.
10:26He did his job another way.
10:295.3 rebounds per game in a short time.
10:35But if you look at the shooting numbers,
10:37he was not producing offensively.
10:41Gary, I still go back to the fact
10:43that I just think Steve Kerr got in his head.
10:45It wasn't the competition.
10:46I think it was mental.
10:47I don't think Steve Kerr meant to get in his head.
10:49But I think Steve Kerr had a liking for Devin Booker,
10:54as he said at the end of the press conference.
10:55He pointed out, without provocation, Booker was this.
10:59Booker was doing great.
11:00Booker is an unsung hero on this team.
11:03And so he liked Drew.
11:05He liked Derek.
11:07Maybe there just wasn't that role that he felt.
11:10And obviously, Jason did not get a chance
11:13to work out of his slump.
11:15There was no easy game.
11:17Maybe the Puerto Rico game, he could have done that.
11:22There was no like, OK, here's a 40-point win.
11:25OK, Jason, score.
11:26Go out there and score 20, 25 points.
11:29Go out there and get it back.
11:31He just didn't have an opportunity.
11:32And once it got the Serbia game, I
11:35don't know what it was about the matchup with Serbia.
11:37I thought he could have helped, especially that second game
11:40where they almost lost.
11:42But Jason didn't have the best resume either.
11:46I'm not going to completely put this on, oh, he was doing great
11:49and Kerr screwed him over.
11:51Jason didn't convince him, you need to have me on the floor.
11:56Devin Booker did.
11:58And Devin Booker made plays.
11:59And I'm not going to, you just look at the numbers.
12:02He didn't play Anthony Edwards a whole lot.
12:04Anthony was kind of a turnover machine at times.
12:06But Anthony had more of a selfish attitude.
12:09And maybe that's what Jason needs to have,
12:11is I'm going to get my shots up.
12:13Like, I'm going to get my shots up.
12:16There's no way that he should have taken four three-pointers
12:20in the Olympic tournament.
12:22That's it.
12:22Right.
12:23And the point that you made, Gary, though,
12:25and I think it's a really good point,
12:27is Steve Kerr had confidence in Devin Booker.
12:30That was before he started playing him all these minutes.
12:33That confidence seemed from the jump
12:35that he had in Devin Booker.
12:37And if you're Tatum, you're smart enough,
12:40you've got a high enough basketball IQ
12:41to just kind of know, you can read the room.
12:44You can tell that I'm not going to get much burn,
12:47no matter what I do.
12:48And so I'm just going to try to do as much as I can,
12:50as quick as I can.
12:51And so then you start thinking.
12:52And then rather than just playing the game,
12:54it just felt like Jason was never
12:56comfortable in his own skin out there,
12:59in part because he had a coach that didn't believe in him.
13:01And I think for Tatum, that might
13:02have been the first time in his career
13:04ever where he felt that way, that he
13:07had a coach that did not believe he
13:09was a great player who could help
13:11this team being on the floor.
13:13And if you think about that, I mean,
13:15Tatum is the highest paid cat in the game right now.
13:18And to be in a situation where you're
13:19playing on a team where the leader, the head of that snake
13:23is the head coach, doesn't believe you're good.
13:26Forget about being the best player.
13:27He doesn't even think you're good enough to be in a team.
13:31Let's face it.
13:32The top 10 guys are at the main table,
13:35and they put you at the kiddie table.
13:37Tatum was at the kiddie table on the Olympic team.
13:40And for the highest paid player to be at the kiddie table
13:43when everyone else is feasting and eating good,
13:45that's just not normal, particularly
13:47if there's no injury involved.
13:48There's no attitude issue.
13:50And as you pointed out, Gary, he was doing all the things
13:53except knocking down shots.
13:54But if you've got a mental block or you've
13:57got a mental impediment going on, which in this case,
14:01I think with Steve Kerr, you're not
14:03going to be the best version of you.
14:04You're not even going to be an average version of yourself.
14:07And again, that's why I think Tatum
14:10is going to be on a absolute massive mission this year.
14:14Tatum is going to be on the MVP.
14:17He's going to be in the MVP race from the jump.
14:19I expect this is going to be the best season that we see.
14:22And when you start looking at his roll call of teams
14:25that he absolutely obliterated, Golden State going to be
14:30up there.
14:31Devin Booker is going to catch a strike.
14:33Devin Booker didn't do nothing wrong,
14:34but Steve Kerr put you in that spot.
14:36And so Tatum's like, OK, if that's your boy,
14:38I'm going to show you why I should
14:40bring your bird over your boy.
14:42Doing Mr. Everything.
14:44I'm going to show you a little bit of everything.
14:46Devin Booker's going to catch some strays.
14:47And I feel bad for Devin Booker, because I
14:49love what I saw out of him.
14:50This is the best I've seen Devin Booker play over
14:53in a stretch of a period of time.
14:55He was really good.
14:56But Tatum's better.
14:57If we're being honest and truthful about it,
14:59Tatum is a better player than Devin Booker.
15:02I had Dwayne Rankin on.
15:04He was on last week, and we talked about just
15:06the impact of Devin Booker.
15:09This is the Devin Booker that they think,
15:11if you put him in a right situation,
15:13he could be this good.
15:14Phoenix, that's another story.
15:16But bottom line is, Tatum is going to be so much better off
15:20in the long run for having gone through something like this.
15:22Because I guarantee you, he's going
15:24to make a point of never allowing himself
15:26to be put in a situation like this,
15:28where he isn't getting any burn for no reason
15:31other than the fact that, well, the coach just
15:34doesn't want to play you.
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17:09Pick more, pick less.
17:11It's that easy.
17:13Yeah, well, you teed it up perfectly
17:14because the next point I was going to make
17:16is the fact that, well, the question that you kind of both
17:19alluded to and answered already was whether or not
17:22this was going to be motivating for Tatum this upcoming season.
17:25Former Celtic Jeff Teague said the similar thing
17:28on his podcast, basically saying that Team USA ruined everything
17:31for the NBA now because they just built the dynasty.
17:34And the fact that now Tatum has a chip on his shoulder
17:37when you already had Jalen upset with Team USA.
17:41And I'll quote Teague at the end.
17:43He said, they're going to come out blank.
17:45Brown is mad he was left off.
17:46Now you're telling Tatum he's pretty much
17:49the worst of all the elites.
17:51So again, I think the Team USA just messed up.
17:55And like you said, there are a lot of bullet points,
17:58circle dates on Tatum's calendar for that revenge tour.
18:02But actually, let's just get right into it.
18:04Pick and roll.
18:05JB, Tatum, do you think they are seeking a season-long revenge
18:10tour?
18:12Are you picking?
18:12Who are you picking?
18:13Hell, yeah.
18:15Are you rolling with them?
18:16Hell, yeah.
18:18I mean, they are going to make every game personal.
18:22They're going to, and personal from the standpoint of this,
18:25they're not going to be selfish in terms
18:27of jacking up every shot.
18:28They're just going to be willing to not only execute the game
18:31plan, but execute their opponent into a pulp.
18:35That is going to be, we saw last season,
18:37they beat not one, not two, but three teams by 50
18:41and some change.
18:42I believe they will do that and then some.
18:44They might beat five or six teams
18:46by 50 and some change this year.
18:47They brought the whole gang back.
18:49And you better believe that everyone
18:50is going to fall in line.
18:51Because when we get to training camp,
18:53I guarantee you there will be some players who
18:55will talk about how they feel their best player was
18:57disrespected by Team USA.
18:59And part of their mission, in addition
19:01to trying to repeat as champions,
19:02is to exact a little bit of payback and revenge
19:04versus just reminding folks that Jason Tatum is still
19:07that guy.
19:08Jason Tatum is still one of the best players.
19:10Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Tatum was the only first
19:13team all NBA player on Team USA.
19:16I think all the other players either were on other teams
19:21for other countries.
19:22And so it is absolutely going to be the revenge for Tatum.
19:26And Jalen, coming off Eastern Conference Finals MVP,
19:30NBA Finals MVP, he's got the Boston Exchange popping.
19:34He's got one out in Golden State Exchange.
19:36That's my team teaming up with Jason Kidd.
19:38So he's trying to bring some money
19:40and trying to build that generational wealth.
19:42OK, Cal.
19:43Right.
19:44He's looking to get others paid.
19:45And he's looking for a little bit of payback
19:47of his own in the basketball kind.
19:48And I think he's going to have a phenomenal season.
19:51I think this might be the year where the Celtics might have
19:53not one, but two guys on first team all NBA.
19:56I can absolutely see that happening.
19:58I think Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown
20:00could assert themselves as the best tandem in the NBA
20:04and certainly position the Celtics to repeat
20:06as champions.
20:07Because again, they got the whole gang back.
20:09And you've got your two best players
20:11about as motivated as the two best players on a defending
20:15champion may have ever been.
20:16I don't know if we can look back in the annals of NBA history
20:20where you had two players who are clearly your best
20:22and second best players who go into the following season
20:26after winning a championship who have legitimate beef
20:30about feeling disrespected.
20:32Jalen Brown, the accolades that he received,
20:35and then the guy that they have to replace
20:39plays your position.
20:41Kawhi Leonard and Jalen Brown, they're not the same players,
20:44but they're very similar.
20:46And again, I had issues with Jalen not publicly
20:50supporting Derrick from day one, which he said that
20:52he did that behind the scenes.
20:53That was my only issue with that.
20:55But the bigger point that he was making was
20:57he should have been the pick.
20:59Particularly when you look at the way,
21:00and Derrick White would have been like, cool,
21:03me and my family going to go to Kabul.
21:05So we're good.
21:06So Derrick White was good.
21:07He was like, play with the Olympics,
21:09chill with the family in Kabul.
21:11Either way, he's winning.
21:13So those two, I think, are going to have a definitely
21:17a different level of energy.
21:20That energy shift that Jalen likes to talk about,
21:22oh, it's going to be on for the jump.
21:24That energy shift is going to be on day one.
21:26And it's going to be fun to watch.
21:29It's going to be really fun to watch.
21:31Because like I said, they each got their own list.
21:33There will be a little bit of intersecting in that list.
21:36And Gary, we know about players when they have that list.
21:40You know, there's certain games we see every year
21:42where you know this player had this matchup on their list.
21:46It could be something as simple as that dude,
21:48you know, we played a card game and he didn't pay me
21:50when he should have paid me.
21:51Or it could be something as simple as he got playing time
21:54when I should have been playing over him.
21:56And I'm going to show him, I'm going to show his coach,
21:58I'm going to show his mom and daddy in the stands
22:00why I am better than him.
22:02And I will let them know that the entire night.
22:05We're going to see some of them games from Tatum.
22:06Tatum has the reputation of being real low key and quiet
22:11and not all that demonstrative.
22:13I think this is going to be,
22:15this is going to be Tatum's coming out party this year.
22:17I think he's going to be extremely vocal,
22:19not only in terms of his words,
22:20but I think his play is going to be a little bit louder
22:23and a little bit edgier than we've seen in the past.
22:26And again, if you're Celtics fans,
22:28you might want to send a thank you card to Steve Kerr.
22:32You just might want to send a thank you card to Steve Kerr
22:34because I think Steve Kerr may very well be
22:37that one missing piece that so many of us
22:39have wanted to see come out of Tatum
22:40and that's just the angry Tatum, the pissed off Tatum.
22:43The Tatum that will not allow himself to be disrespected,
22:47will not allow his franchise to be disrespected
22:50and play with that edge, that anger
22:53that I think he has inside of him,
22:55but we just haven't really seen that much of it.
22:57I like it, I'm looking forward to this season.
23:00So Steve Kerr, shout out to Steve Kerr.
23:04Gary, do you agree?
23:08I do think that this is an unusual off season
23:13very much for a defending champion,
23:16where generally as a defending champion,
23:19you're in the streets, you're partying, you're celebrated.
23:21Everybody's telling you how great you are.
23:25It's like the old Temptation song, Standing on the Top.
23:29Everybody tells you how great you are, a superstar.
23:31Do you have any money to lend?
23:35And so everybody's telling you, you're amazing.
23:38But for Jason and Jalen,
23:40no one's telling them how great they are.
23:42You and Team USA both told them, you're not great.
23:45You're not elite yet.
23:47You don't get the respect.
23:48You're not even good enough to be on the team, Jalen.
23:50You're not, you don't get the respect you deserve.
23:52You don't get the respect of other guys here.
23:57And so you're going into a season
24:00where motivation might be an issue
24:03because you've already gotten over the top.
24:05You're motivating them.
24:07So I think that's a good thing for Southern fans
24:11in terms of like motivation won't be an issue.
24:13They didn't live fat this summer.
24:15They didn't get out of shape this summer.
24:17They didn't get to go on the tour
24:18and get everybody, you know, around Boston, of course.
24:22But outside of Boston, there's still that, you know,
24:26people saying Tatum's not an elite player.
24:29Oh, why are you complaining?
24:31They won the gold.
24:32Jason wasn't that good.
24:34Like all that, and the same with Jalen.
24:35Why Jalen crying?
24:38You know, so they both,
24:41your top two players go into a season
24:44after you won a championship with major motivation.
24:47And I think that's unusual
24:49because obviously when you win a title,
24:51everybody is telling you how great you are, a superstar.
24:54Do you have any money to lend?
24:57And they haven't been told that.
25:00They ain't got, ain't nobody asked.
25:02Somebody might've asked Jason for some money
25:04after he signed the contract.
25:06They aren't telling everybody how great you are, a superstar.
25:10They're not doing that.
25:11They are belittling their NBA efforts,
25:17belittling their personal gains.
25:19And now it's up to Jalen and Jason to come together,
25:22join forces as they have and say, okay, dudes.
25:25Okay, guys.
25:26Like, okay, Jason.
25:27Okay, Jalen.
25:29We both got a reason to be mad.
25:32Let's go in here and let's just beat everybody down.
25:35Starting with the New York Knicks on opening night.
25:37Everybody trying to come after us.
25:38Okay, you want Boston, you've got Boston.
25:41Now, whether that happens remains to be seen.
25:44Whether that motivation, how long it lasts,
25:48how Joe Mizzoula deals with it,
25:49how the other guys on the team,
25:51I think they'll be motivated for them.
25:53But I do think it's an unusual situation
25:55where the Celtics go into this season
25:57with a chip on their shoulder just as much as other teams.
26:00Because now we get back to the NBA season.
26:02Team USA is over.
26:04And it was sad.
26:05It was sad to see Jason,
26:07because you thought, oh, Jason's a mainstay on this team.
26:10And then to see him kind of relegated to just a guy,
26:12it was hard.
26:13I felt bad for Halliburton.
26:15Halliburton's a good ball player.
26:17And Kerr just decided right away, you're not-
26:19He's a good sport, though.
26:20Did you see his tweet?
26:21He said-
26:22No, it was cool.
26:23He accepted it.
26:24But he's also 23, people are like,
26:26why can't Jason do that?
26:27Because Jason, Halliburton ain't first team
26:29on the NBA three years in a row.
26:31Halliburton's saying they're not at the same place
26:35in their career.
26:36So, no, Jason's not gonna turn around and have a tweet
26:39when you didn't do, done a group project,
26:41but you got an A.
26:43It's not Jason.
26:44Jason doesn't feel-
26:45Yeah, it's different for, yeah.
26:46Yeah, Halliburton's in a different spot in his career.
26:49He plays for kind of a team that came out of nowhere
26:52in Indiana.
26:53This was his major breakout year, right?
26:56He's had two really good years
26:59after being traded from Sacramento.
27:01So, they're not in the same position.
27:02So, I don't, the whole like,
27:04well, you should act like Halliburton.
27:06Halliburton was his first Olympics.
27:08He was just glad to be there.
27:09He's like, I'm on this team with LeBron and KD.
27:12I played with some K-Wigs.
27:14I'm not gonna say nothing.
27:15I'm 23.
27:16LeBron 37.
27:17That's the beauty of it.
27:18But Jason feels a little different.
27:21He hadn't had wars with LeBron over seven years,
27:23wars with KD, playoff series with KD,
27:26playoff series with Steph.
27:28This is, he feels like he's more one of their peers.
27:32He's not the understudy.
27:33Now, he's either next coming generation,
27:35like with Bam out of Bayou and Booker.
27:38Yeah, those guys born in the mid to late 90s.
27:42They're not, you know,
27:43Curry and LeBron and Steph are 80s babies.
27:47These dudes are the 90s, right?
27:48But to me,
27:51Jason's gotta get some rest, first of all.
27:54I just think maybe a little tired,
27:57probably a new dad for the second time.
28:00Take care of your family for the next month and a half.
28:02Go on vacation, get some rest,
28:05then get back in the lab, work on the jumper,
28:07because that's a concern.
28:08That is a concern for me,
28:10that it just, his three wasn't falling in the playoffs.
28:14His three didn't really fall.
28:16Like, he's gotta get that three back.
28:18And then Jalen, I think he's already been working out.
28:21Jalen will be fine,
28:22but come together and just say,
28:25hey guys, like Jason, Jalen,
28:27look at each other and be like, this is us.
28:29Like, we're taking out all suckers.
28:32And so that's the mentality they need to have.
28:35And let's see-
28:36I can't wait.
28:41Here's the thing.
28:43And don't say anything about when I say,
28:44here's the thing, Gary.
28:45Shut up.
28:46When somebody says, here's the thing,
28:47we know they're lying, but go ahead.
28:51No, but I mean, I mean, I've talked with players
28:56who have won championships,
28:57and Chelsea Bill specifically,
28:58him and I, we've had this conversation.
29:00And he has talked about how as hard as you think it is
29:04to win a championship, it's even harder to repeat.
29:06Because you know that every single game you play,
29:10that team, no matter how good or bad they are,
29:12they're going to play better than they normally do,
29:14because it's you.
29:15And so you have to,
29:18you can mentally prepare yourself for that,
29:20but that mental preparation is nothing compared
29:22to what you're actually going to have to go through.
29:24And one of the things that, you know,
29:26not just Chelsea, but other guys I've talked to
29:27have won titles as mentioned,
29:29is how motivation is really hard to come by
29:33because you've already been through this gauntlet
29:35and you knew how to be the last team standing.
29:38You've done that before.
29:39So it's not like you're entering
29:42into this uncharted territory.
29:43But what makes this Celtics team so unique,
29:46as Gary pointed out and as we've been talking about,
29:49is the one thing that you always question championships
29:53having, which is added motivation,
29:54is not a question with this team.
29:56The only question that lies out there
29:59is how are they going to use this added motivation
30:02going forward?
30:03Are they going to go out there
30:05and absolutely annihilate teams?
30:07Are they going to use it in,
30:10where they just kind of puff their stats
30:11and maybe that doesn't necessarily facilitate winning,
30:14but there is going to be a different level of motivation
30:18that these defending champions have
30:19that no other defending champion in recent memory has had.
30:24And I'm looking forward to seeing it.
30:26I will have my popcorn ready to watch the show
30:30because I think this is going to be a phenomenal season
30:34for the Celtics.
30:35I think Jason and Jalen
30:35are going to have incredible seasons.
30:37I think both are going to be in strong contention
30:40to be first team all NBA.
30:42And I think the Celtics are just going to look even scarier
30:46this year than they did last year,
30:47because last year they're playing great basketball,
30:49but they don't know how this is going to end.
30:50They're just thinking,
30:51if we can just keep doing what we're doing,
30:52maybe we'll be the last team standing.
30:54Now that they know what that journey looks like
30:57and they're motivated to get back there again,
30:59not because they want to win it again per se,
31:01but because there's added motivation
31:03beyond that particular nugget,
31:06I think this team is going to be scary.
31:08And I think Jeff Teague was spot on.
31:10I think Jeff Teague said,
31:11y'all are effed it up for the rest of the damn league now,
31:13Team USA.
31:14Thanks, thanks a lot.
31:1629 other teams are thinking like,
31:17please play Tatum a little bit,
31:18please play him a little bit.
31:21So I'm looking forward to the show
31:23because it is going to be made for TV.
31:26It's going to be big time, elite, top tier basketball,
31:30I think all season long.
31:31I don't think anyone is going to be scared.
31:32We're not going to get those Tuesday at Charlotte games.
31:35I don't think there'll be too many of them.
31:37There will not, that's just not going to happen
31:39with this team.
31:40So I'm looking forward to it.
31:42Yes, Steve Kerr will have to be named finals MVP
31:44if that's the case too.
31:46Facts, facts.
31:47You know what?
31:48If the Celtics wind up winning it again
31:51and Tatum gets MVP,
31:54it would be me.
31:55I'd be petty enough to be like,
31:56I just want to thank my family, my coach, Steve Kerr.
32:00Shout out to you, my man, Steve Kerr.
32:02I would absolutely give him a shout out.
32:03And just like wink, like, you know.
32:06Be like, and my man, Steve Kerr, absolutely.
32:10Gary wouldn't do that because Gary's too classy for that,
32:12but I'm petty like that.
32:13We need someone to be petty on this podcast.
32:15It's summertime and there's no better way to spend it
32:18than at the ballpark.
32:19Popcorn, soda, hot dogs.
32:22Mm, I'm starting to get hungry just thinking about it.
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33:56All right, before we wrap up, Gary,
33:58what were your takeaways from the land itself, Paris, France?
34:03Looks like you got a little Paris action
34:04going on with that collar.
34:07Paris is a great city.
34:11It's huge.
34:12It's not, it's, for an American here, you can make it.
34:17I mean, there's enough people that know English
34:19or know a little bit
34:20and you pick up the language a little bit.
34:22So it's been amazing.
34:25The Olympic tournament was great.
34:26The people are very nice.
34:29The food is interesting, you know.
34:32If you don't like this, Escargot, there's a lot of-
34:35You know when we say interesting,
34:36you know what that mean, Quanie.
34:37When we say food is interesting.
34:39The food is interesting.
34:40It's interesting.
34:41Everything has cheese.
34:42If you like cheese, this is the place to be.
34:43I do like cheese.
34:45Chocolate, everything has chocolate.
34:49And so it's a beautiful city.
34:53It's a huge city with a lot of layers.
34:56I'm staying on one side, the Western side now.
34:59West side.
35:00Very, very nice.
35:03And during the Olympic tournament,
35:05I stayed in more kind of the central part of the city
35:08where the basketball arena was.
35:11And you see the same things as other big cities.
35:13Some of the homelessness and things like that.
35:17A lot of people, if you, you know,
35:20the smoking rules are a little different here.
35:21So everybody smokes.
35:23They smoke in public places, restaurants.
35:25Do they smoke indoors still?
35:27No, they can't smoke indoors, but they smoke outdoors.
35:29So if you're outdoors or you're trying to chill,
35:31then two people would just be talking and smoking.
35:34The cigarette thing's a little different.
35:37But it's a beautiful city.
35:38I've been very impressed.
35:39I was also impressed with Lille,
35:41which is two hours north
35:42where the first week of the basketball tournament took place.
35:46That was a wonderful suburb.
35:50Just a lot of cool things.
35:53And I was very comfortable there.
35:56Walked the city and just got a chance to see that area.
36:01So this has been a great experience.
36:04I'd never really been to France.
36:06I've been to Italy.
36:08Remember Sherrod, we was in Italy
36:09and you got recognized and, you know,
36:12Sherrod Bickley, Sherrod Bickley.
36:13I was like, oh gosh.
36:14Aw, that's so cute.
36:15We're outside the Timo Hotel with Sherrod.
36:18Like he sent me El Jackson or something.
36:20Hi.
36:21Hi.
36:22Like, y'all recognize this fool in Milan.
36:29I cannot believe this.
36:31Let me go home.
36:32Let me, let me get up out of here.
36:34I can't, I can't see this.
36:35I see there's another embossed one.
36:36Well, you know, what can I say?
36:37What can I say?
36:41But I had never really been to,
36:42I'd never been to France.
36:43So it's been a wonderful experience.
36:46I have a lot of great pictures,
36:47a lot of great things, a lot of great thoughts.
36:49And so, yeah, it's been a wonderful,
36:52and it was a good to have an Olympics.
36:54Japan, it was a pandemic.
36:57Everybody had to wear a mask.
36:58It was very limited.
36:59You know, you could only go for the first two weeks
37:02to your venue and back to your hotel.
37:04You couldn't be in the streets and that type of thing.
37:07So it was a great experience to see Japan,
37:09but this with kind of the, you know,
37:13the limits lifted off and the limit and all that.
37:16And then kind of the, it's a freer Olympics.
37:20I think everybody kind of pointed out how it was cool
37:22and the fans were into it.
37:23They filled the basketball arena for the games.
37:27The women's game was fun.
37:28The gold medal game to see the, you know,
37:31unfortunately Gabby Williams from France
37:33had her feet were a little too long,
37:36but that was an exciting game.
37:37And just to see, as I said, be on this,
37:41it's a pleasure and an honor to cover the Olympics
37:43and to be in this atmosphere,
37:45all the different countries,
37:46the reporters from different countries.
37:49And you get to see them, meet them.
37:50That is so awesome experience so far.
37:54Good.
37:55Well done, Gary.
37:57And in 2020, it'd be in LA, your hood, West side.
38:00Yeah.
38:01I can't stay with my mama.
38:03I was gonna say.
38:04Come on.
38:05No.
38:06How did she own your house?
38:08My mama ain't got no vacancies.
38:11She gonna be right in the heart of it, her.
38:13You said you're down the street from the Rose Bowl, right?
38:14My house is down the street from SoFi.
38:16That's your house?
38:17Yeah, my mama house.
38:19My mama.
38:20All right, well tell her.
38:21I'm gonna call her.
38:21I gotta get her number.
38:22Down the street from SoFi, like a long walk,
38:25but it's a walk, you can walk it.
38:27So we'll see.
38:28Airbnb.
38:29And the new basketball, the new Clippers Arena,
38:31right down the street.
38:32That's the hood.
38:34Oh, mama could make a brick or two.
38:36Yeah.
38:37Good.
38:37We'll see.
38:38Talk to mama.
38:39God bless.
38:40Yeah, talk to mama.
38:41Lord willing, everybody's still here.
38:42Four years, nothing, you know.
38:44But yeah, 28 should be fun.
38:47So that means we will be staying there.
38:48I love this.
38:50Yeah.
38:51Glad we sorted this out.
38:52I have somewhere to stay.
38:52Yeah.
38:54Exactly.
38:55You can stay.
38:56I don't know about Sherrod.
38:57My million's couch too.
38:58Yeah.
38:58We'll see.
38:59We'll see how it goes.
39:01Right.
39:02Facts.
39:03Well, Sherrod and I were here in Boston,
39:05so I don't think we had much to say about the landscape.
39:08The traffic is still bad.
39:09I think the Sumner Tunnel just opened.
39:12August 5th, yep.
39:13And the weather's getting better.
39:15That's all we got for you, Gary.
39:17That's all.
39:17You know, thank you for living in the luxurious Nefrez.
39:20Okay.
39:21We ain't got no baguettes.
39:22We ain't got no croissants.
39:22We ain't bringing all our croissants back.
39:26But you can keep the snails, though.
39:27You can keep the snails.
39:28No, no escargot for you.
39:29Okay.
39:30Nah, we good.
39:31But honestly, it was cool to,
39:33like I said, our friend Gershon Abuseli showed out.
39:37Celtics legend.
39:38That dunk on LeBron.
39:40The Dancing Bear did a good job of LeBron.
39:42He wants to come back to the NBA.
39:43He wants to come back to the NBA.
39:45So hopefully he gets a shot.
39:46I don't know if it's going to be the Celtics,
39:47but it was good to see Gershon
39:51because obviously, like our friend,
39:54Sherrod's young, young, young son, Bruno Caboclo.
39:58Not Sherrod's son.
40:00Sherrod's son, Isaiah Caboclo.
40:02He gave y'all buckets.
40:04How'd he go to NABJ and then play for Brazil?
40:07Like, that's just, that's amazing.
40:10Like, your son got skills.
40:12And then dropped 30.
40:14Yeah, he dropped 30 on Team USA.
40:15I'm like, damn, Isaiah,
40:16didn't I see you on that NABJ panel?
40:18And you're like, wow.
40:20Unbelievable.
40:21We gotta get a DNA test.
40:22Yeah, I know.
40:23No, we don't.
40:24Sherrod.
40:25No, we don't.
40:26You put them two next to each other.
40:27It's like, wait a minute.
40:29No, we don't.
40:30We're good.
40:31We're good.
40:32We should stop talking.
40:33Sherrod, Sherrod, that's a Brazilian in his family.
40:35Anyway, good to see Gershon.
40:39Like you saw him, he was a little too young
40:41when he got to the league.
40:43Not quite as mature enough physically.
40:45Hadn't got himself together.
40:47And now at 28, his body's right.
40:50You know, he's always gonna be a big guy.
40:54But just seemingly confident in his game.
40:57And he wants to come back.
40:58So we'll see.
40:59I know he's got a year left with Real Madrid.
41:01He's got a Mark Stein report.
41:03He has a $2.5 million buyout.
41:05His buyout was a million dollars before the Olympics started.
41:09So that's a tough one.
41:09Like, if he had had a million dollar buyout,
41:13I'm sure some teams would have looked into it.
41:14But hopefully he gets another shot.
41:17Because I thought that it was good
41:19to see him mature like that.
41:21And I've seen him.
41:22I saw him in the Olympics in Japan.
41:24He was pretty good there too.
41:26You could just see the growth.
41:27But unfortunately, a lot of these guys get bad advice,
41:30come into the league way too early.
41:32Teams give up on them,
41:33and then suddenly they're back overseas.
41:35So hopefully Gershon gets his shot.
41:39And he's still got that bubbly personality.
41:42So that was good to see him flourish.
41:45Keep an eye out for Utah.
41:46Wouldn't be surprised if Danny tries to bring him back over.
41:50Wouldn't be shocked at all.
41:51Utah, watch out for.
41:53Okay.
41:55Well, on that note, until next week,
41:57we'll find something to talk about.
41:59You know, the Celtics' new cycle never ends.
42:02Rayshard Blake, thank you very much for-
42:03The schedule comes out.
42:03So we'll be talking about,
42:04the schedule comes out this week.
42:05We're starting a little hint of the schedule.
42:08So we'll be able to talk about the full schedule next week.
42:12Exactly. So stay tuned for that.
42:13Tell a friend to subscribe to the Big Three NBA podcast.
42:16Until next week, Gary Washburn, HR Berkeley,
42:19Kwanye Lewis, thank you for listening.