NBA Legend Blamed for Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown’s Celtics Fallout originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
DeMarcus Cousins believes Jason Kidd helped fuel the divide between Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
On the latest episode of “Gil’s Arena,” the four-time All-Star pointed to Kidd’s comments during the 2024 NBA Finals as a turning point in the relationship between the former Boston Celtics teammates.
“The whole downfall of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, that was J Kidd,” Cousins said. “He was in an interview and he did exactly what you saying. Like, ‘How can those guys play together?’
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“Ever since then, they ran with the story. That was J Kidd, bro. And he was just playing mind games to win the game.”
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Kidd, the head coach of the Dallas Mavericks at the time, called Brown Boston’s best player after Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Finals.
Kidd’s comments came after Brown won Eastern Conference Finals MVP honors over Tatum. Brown then outscored Tatum, 22-16, in Boston’s Game 1 win over Dallas, adding six rebounds, three steals and three blocks. Tatum finished with 11 rebounds but shot 6-for-16 from the field.
Neither player appeared interested in taking the bait. Brown said he had “no reaction,” while Tatum acknowledged that people had long tried to create a divide between them.
“We’ve been in this position for many years of guys trying to divide us and say that one of us should be traded or one is better than the other,” Tatum added. “So it’s not our first time at the rodeo.”
Kidd’s comments didn’t prevent the Celtics from winning the NBA championship — they defeated the Mavericks in five games — but two years later, Tatum and Brown are no longer teammates.
Cousins believes that the NBA legend’s mind games set the eventual split in motion.