Jayson Tatum‘s exclusion from the starting lineup caused controversy even though Team USA won the gold medal at the Olympics in Paris in 2024. Steve Kerr, the head coach, was chastised by several fans, who questioned his judgment.
In the middle of the annoyance, Shannon Sharpe recently offered an opposing viewpoint in favor of the 58-year-old’s choice.
During Nightcap, Unc voiced his opinions and talked about how the fourth quarter vs Serbia had begun with fellow panelist Chad Johnson. Considering they were losing by 13 points at one point, he thought Team USA had fielded the strongest squad imaginable.
In light of those facts, the 56-year-old supported Coach Kerr’s decision, saying:
“I think sometimes coaches do get caught up in the moment and all they are thinking about, ‘Okay, my big guns. LeBron, KD, Steph, Joel Embiid’… So at that point in time, I’m like, ‘I’m trying to find a combination’… So I just that point in time, ‘If I’mma go down, I’m going down with my big guns… Those four guys are gonna play the lion’s share of minutes in the fourth quarter’”.
Was it fair to bench Jayson Tatum ?
In light of Team USA’s roster composition, Sharpe’s remarks made sense. At that point, it was imperative to bring in the big three: LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant. Having won ten titles between them and having a track record of successfully changing the course of games for more than ten years, it made sense to have them on the court when things mattered most.
It also made sense to pair them alongside Devin Booker and Joel Embiid in light of the players’ previous performances. While the latter served as the lineup’s glue, the former’s 7 feet tall stature gave Team USA an advantage in the paint.
It appeared as though Kerr had made a deliberate choice to field all five of them at once. Kerr said,
“It’s tough but Jayson handled it really well. I talked to him today before the game that it may play out this way with Kevin coming back and the lineups that I wanted to get to”.
