USA basketball managed to form one of the most star-studded teams in the history of the Games this year. The current Stacked Team USA had a strong roster, but many fans and analyst criticized USA head coach Steve Kerr for not using the talents of the whole team to the fullest.
Great players like Jayson Tatum just got a handful of minutes during the whole tournament. Even after coming off a dominant championship victory with the Celtics, Tatum was majorly in the sidelines throughout the tournament.
Recently on the Scoop B radio, Golden State Warriors star Kevon Looney discussed Steve Kerr and his coaching style during the Olympics. According to Looney, Steve Kerr made the decision to limit Jayson Tatum‘s role during the Olympics. Looney believes that Kerr always prioritizes winning and sometimes makes decisions with the team’s victory in mind.
Steve’s all about winning; he’s going to do all the necessary things to win and he did win so… and when he makes a call like that and it actually works out, you kind of have to take it. He’s a coach that won as a player, a GM and as a head coach. So, you kind of have to respect his basketball knowledge.
Kevon Looney via Scoop B
Looney even mentioned that Kerr’s decisions of the team rotations certainly paid off as Team USA went undefeated in the Olympics. Tatum not getting time to play during the Olympics made the headlines of all sports talk shows.
Later even Kerr admitted his mistake of benching Tatum, saying he felt like an idiot for doing so. Overall, Tatum just played in four games and averaged 5.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.
Kevon Looney on Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Halliburton’s lack of playing time in the Olympics from Steve Kerr:
“I know as a player, it sucks. I know that they went out there to sacrifice and give minutes for our country and not seeing him get minutes sometimes is always gonna be… pic.twitter.com/IgChNjrdyt
— 👑 Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson (@ScoopB) September 3, 2024
Steve Kerr is considered as one of the most successful head coaches in the NBA. He played a pivotal role in the Warriors dynasty in the last decade. But many analysts are still criticizing Kerr for his decision of benching Tatum as the Celtics star was coming off his best season in the NBA.
Carmelo Anthony speaks up for Jayson Tatum
Carmelo Anthony has been one of the best Team USA players in Olympic history. Melo has been a part of three gold medal-winning teams in the Olympics. Recently on his podcast, Melo joined a million voices in speaking out against Steve Kerr for his behavior towards Jayson Tatum. Anthony criticized Kerr’s actions, calling for accountability and respect in sports.
On the 7PM in Brooklyn Podcast, Melo stated that Kerr and Tatum’s lack of communication was one of the main reasons for concern. Melo even mentioned that he understood the situation that happened with Tatum but was not happy with how things were handled. He also pointed out that the stacked lineup of USA was a factor in Tatum receiving less playing time.
Although Tatum didn’t receive enough playing time this Olympics, fans could expect Tatum to play a bigger role in the 2028 Olympics. Tatum will be 30 by the time next Olympics shows up. He will be a more complete player with many more achievements stacked up in his resume.
