DeMarcus Cousins didn’t hold back when Jayson Tatum came up on a recent episode of the “Gil’s Arena” podcast.
The 11-year NBA veteran took aim at the Celtics star over the way he handled Jaylen Brown after Brown was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, saying Tatum should have reached out during what Cousins described as a difficult stretch for his former teammate.
“For Jaylen Brown to come out and be like, 'I haven't talked to him.' That says a lot,” said Cousins. “Especially for a guy you spent nine years with, won a championship with, went to multiple Conference championships, all of these things he mentioned and then I’m at one of the lowest points of my career and I don’t hear from the guy that supposedly had love for me.”
Brown said at his introductory press conference in August that when he was asked whether he had spoken to Tatum, the answer was, “ not really.”
That came after the Celtics and 76ers agreed to the trade on July 1, giving the two former teammates more than a month to connect before Brown spoke publicly. The reaction around Brown’s answer was predictable, especially given the length of time the two spent together as teammates - nine seasons, capped by an NBA championship.
The relationship between Tatum and Brown has been under a microscope for a while, with one report saying it was “ as close to non-existent as you could have” over the last two seasons. Tatum, though, has presented a different version of things. In an interview with Dan Patrick, he called Brown a “ tremendous person and a player” and said he loves him.
Cousins wasn’t convinced by that framing, dismissing Tatum’s remarks as “PR.”
“I expected a lot more support just throughout this process from Tatum,” Cousins concluded.
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