After a lackluster showing in their exhibition matchups, Team USA has been able to ramp it up since the start of the Olympics. Defeating Serbia by 26 points, and South Sudan by a 17, the U.S. national team seems to be on the right track to win the gold. However, Jeff Teague does not seem to agree with Steve Kerr’s lineups.
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Teague, an NBA champion with the 2021 Bucks, spoke about Kerr and his antics regarding the lineups. Discussing the lack of minutes being allotted to Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum on the Club520 Podcast, this is what he had to say.
“Everybody don’t play. I get it. Somebody gonna have to miss the boat but y’all blowing teams out. Like, how? How Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum don’t get in the game…Why you can’t find minutes for them?”
Teague and the rest of his co-hosts were not just appalled but disgruntled as well over Kerr’s decision to not play Tatum and Haliburton. In their opening matchup against Serbia, JT and Hali kept warming the bench, while Derrick White got 16 minutes off the bench.
Yes, White is a great complementary player to the stars on the floor. But to go with White instead of the five-time All-Star (Tatum) from the same championship team on the bench was something no one on the show could comprehend.
Even co-host DJ Wells declared:
“Bro, telling me that you can’t find minutes for Jayson Tatum is crazy. In any aspect of the conversation, that’s absurd.”
And it wasn’t just Tatum who was left off the playing time list in the opening matchup against Serbia. Pacers’ All-Star Haliburton failed to see any time on the floor as well.
Kerr’s decision to go with a guard instead of a forward may justify his decision to play White over Tatum. But to choose the Celtics guard instead of a taller and stronger All-Star point guard in Haliburton was where even fans drew the line.
Luckily, the same player rotation wasn’t repeated in Team USA’s matchup against South Sudan. Tatum not only started the game but also played a total of 17 minutes, along with Haliburton’s 8-minute cameo. However, this time it was Joel Embiid who missed out on all the action.
Kerr’s decisions are earning him a lot of heat and scrutiny on social media. But will that lead the Warriors’ head coach to change his game plan? We’ll find out soon enough as Team USA prepares to take on Puerto Rico next.
