One of the biggest storylines surrounding the U.S. team’s epic comeback against Serbia in the semifinals on Thursday was the substitution of Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum. For the second time during the 2024 Paris Olympics, Tatum did not play a single second of game time. Both incidents occurred in games against Serbia.
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Luckily for the Americans, they were able to pull out a win and advance to Saturday’s gold medal game against France. But now the question remains, will Tatum get playing time?
Only head coach Steve Kerr can answer that question, but it’s clear that Kerr will do whatever he thinks is best for the team to win. Tatum has remained a professional throughout the Olympics, but the five-time All-Star probably isn’t happy about being benched multiple times.
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Kerr and his coaching staff have been criticized by several people, including former Celtics legend Bob Cousy. Cousy called the substitution of Tatum embarrassing.
“This is not just an insult,” Cousy said Friday morning. “This is a disgrace to this poor boy all over the (expletive) world. The Olympics have become so big. Everyone is going to think there’s something wrong with this boy.”
But that’s not all: Tatum’s mother also got involved in the situation. She answered a question from long-time college basketball commentator Dick Vitale about whether Tatum was injured.
“No he doesn’t. But if you find out what’s going on please let me know – this is unacceptable and makes NO SENSE,” Cole wrote.
After Tatum’s first substitution, Kerr said he felt like an idiot for the decision, but stressed that the hardest part of the job is finding playing time for all the talented players on the roster.
“The hardest thing about this job is that you’re leaving at least a couple of guys on the bench who are world class, some of the best players in the world,” Kerr added. “On the one hand, that makes no sense at all. On the other hand, I’m asking those guys to focus on winning one game and then move on to the next. I have to do the same thing. And that’s why I felt last night that those were the combinations that made the most sense.”
The U.S. team could use Tatum’s scoring and defensive talent against France, as the French have a lot of long-playing players on their roster. Tatum will likely get some minutes this time, but if not, Kerr will likely come under fire again.
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