Kriti Mehrotra
It was back when Jayson Tatum was just a young boy growing up in St. Louis, Missouri, that he decided he wanted to be a professional basketball player in the NBA, only to never look back. In fact, according to his as well as his parent’s accounts in Netflix’s ‘Starting 5,’ he didn’t even think of a plan B at any point because he was so set on his goals, driving him to push himself over the years. That’s not to say his success is his alone since his parents also made a lot of sacrifices for his dreams despite their own issues, but that is something he is aware of and is eternally grateful for.
Brandy and Justin Pushed Their Son to Be His Best
Considering the fact Jayson was born on March 3, 1998, to Brandy Cole-Barnes and Justin Tatum while they were both still actively attending college, he didn’t have the most normal upbringing. That’s because his mother was merely an 18-year-old freshman on a volleyball scholarship at the University of Missouri–St. Louis, whereas his father was a basketball star at Saint Louis University. As if that’s not enough, apart from not being physically together, they weren’t in a romantic relationship either, so he was primarily raised by his mother on campus and often only saw his dad on the court.
As per Justin’s own account in the aforementioned show, he didn’t know anything about fatherhood when Jayson was born, but he did know basketball, so he decided that’s what they would bond on. Little did he know that in his ensuing efforts to get his son into the sport, the latter would grow to idolize Kobe Bryant and dream of being an athlete himself, all the while having the tenacity to develop the necessary skills. The primary example of this is when Brandy contacted NBA Strategic Skills Coach Drew Hanlen to train Jayson while he was still a freshman in high school, and he decided to just run him to the ground.
Drew had actually made it clear to Brandy he doesn’t work with aspiring athletes that young, but he decided to have one intense session with him upon her insistence just to see his determination. At the end of the day, she contacted him and stated Jayson had returned home dead tired but said, “Mama, they are going to have to carry me off the court before I give up.” That’s when Drew decided to work with him. This was reportedly long after Justin had returned from the Netherlands after playing there professionally for a while and evolved into a coach, pushing his son to do his best at every turn too.
Jayson Tatum Has Varied Dynamics With His Parents
Since Jayson was primarily raised by Brandy, he admittedly has such a great relationship with her that he genuinely considers her his best friend as well as truest confidant to this very day. If she is by his side, he always feels at ease because he knows all she ever wants is to see him happy and successful in anything he wants to do — it’s why he always trusts her with his son Jayson “Deuce” Jr. too. He is a mama’s boy, and he unabashedly wears that title not only because of everything she has done for him but also because of how she has shown up for him at every step of the way in life.
As for Jayson’s relationship with his father, that is a lot more complicated since he claims Justin was more of a coach to him growing up than an active father, especially considering his strict ways. “I feel like I missed out on a father-son relationship,” he once expressed. “Me and my dad only ever went to games or practice and to get haircuts. We didn’t go to amusement parks. We didn’t go to picnics, or fishing, or really have father-son talks because it was just all basketball.” That’s just part of why he is determined to be a much different parent to Deuce — he wants to help him be his best, all the while caring for him, loving him, and simply spending quality time with him.
Nevertheless, it’s imperative to note that Jayson and Justin have managed to mend their relationship quite a lot over the years by understanding their differences, enabling them to be better. The former has since also conceded that his father’s efforts to make him tough by being way too hard on and upsetting him did work in a way, as he probably wouldn’t be where he is now without those harsh experiences. After all, this Olympic Gold Medalist is the man who led the Boston Celtics to the 2023-2024 NBA Championship after nearly two decades, with both his parents as well as his son being in the crowd for it.
Brandy and Justin Lead Different Lives These Days
Coming to Missouri natives Brandy and Justin’s individual experiences, it appears as if the former is a professional attorney, while the latter continues to serve as a career basketball coach. The matriarch reportedly holds several different higher-education degrees, including a Bachelor’s in Communication as well as a Master’s in Law, the latter of which she earned in 2010. She has thus always given huge importance to education not just for her son and grandson, as indicated in the aforementioned Netflix original, but also for herself, enabling her to now serve as an active lawyer.
We should also mention that Brandy is now happily married to the love of her life, Marcus “Jake” Barnes — they tied the knot surrounded by loved ones in a cozy beach ceremony in the Bahamas back in 2016. As for Justin, he is actually a father of three now. He has 26-year-old NBA athlete Jayson, he has another son named Jaycob, who seems to be a 20-year-old star footballer at Western Illinois University, and he has a young, roughly 10-year-old daughter called Kayden. So, to support them, he serves as a highly experienced basketball coach running his own summer camp in St. Louis while also doing his best to show up on important occasions and whenever else they need him.
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