Steve Kerr on decision not to play Jayson Tatum vs. Serbia: 'He'll be back out there next game'
Team USA men’s basketball played a complete game in the Olympics on Sunday. After getting off to a slow start, the Americans kicked things into high gear eventually, and beat Serbia 110-84. One player who didn’t see the floor at all was Celtics’ superstar Jayson Tatum. Following the blowout, USA head coach Steve Kerr explained his reasoning.
“[Jayson Tatum] handled it well. I talked to him today before the game, that it may play out this way just with Kevin [Durant] coming back… I felt like an idiot not playing him… [In] a 40-minute game, you can’t play more than 10. You really can’t. I think he’s an amazing guy. Great player. And handled it beautifully. You know, he’ll be back out there next game,” Kerr explained on Sunday.
Tatum being the odd man out in the rotation didn’t make a lot of sense. He started games on the exhibition schedule. After the game, Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe asked Tatum about his finger being wrapped and if he was injured. “No, I’m good,” Tatum responded.
Kerr got amazing performances on Sunday from two of his biggest superstars, LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Both players have long been two of the best players in the world and they took matters into their own hands. Durant showcased one of the best performances in Olympic history, only missing a single shot in his first game back from nursing a calf strain. He pumped in 23 points, connecting on eight of his nine shots from the field, and hitting all five of his shots from beyond the arc.
LeBron James was not to be outdone, stuffing the stat sheet with 21 points, nine assists, and eight rebounds. He connected on 9 of 13 shots from the field. Durant and James combined for 33 points to put the USA up 58-49 at halftime.
The Americans took advantage of the time that Nikola Jokic rested. Once he went to the bench, USA owned a 26-point advantage in the 9 minutes and 15 seconds he was off the floor. The Americans were scorching hot from beyond the arc, hitting 18 of 32 shots from downtown. USA also got a great performance from Steph Curry, who pumped in 11 points.
While it was an impressive victory for the Americans, Serbia played much better than the final score indicates. USA was trailing for the first few minutes of the game. Once Durant came in, he turned it on and put the Americans on his back. LeBron James was phenomenal, too.
It’ll be fascinating to see if Team USA can continue to play at a high level the rest of the way.