Despite guiding Team USA to an unbeaten run in the 2024 Paris Olympics, fans were dissatisfied with Steve Kerr. The head coach’s decision to overlook Jayson Tatum throughout the tournament didn’t sit well with them, leading to widespread debates.
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Recently, Jeff Teague weighed in, discussing the negative impact of this judgment on the national team.
On the Club 520 Podcast, the 36-year-old explained how the perceived injustice toward Tatum might discourage NBA players from committing to Team USA. He believed that Kerr’s decision revealed the management’s willingness to sacrifice a star player’s current form to achieve the objectives.
Expressing the potential long-term consequences of this decision, Teague claimed,
“They just ruined everything for the NBA now, the USA team did… After people seeing Jayson Tatum getting benched, I think people gonna be cool… ‘I just won a chip, First Team All-NBA. I’m having the best year of my life. Then I go to the Olympics and y’all telling me I’m the weakest one on the team?'”.
Teague‘s statement highlighted the beliefs of many fans who felt Tatum deserved a starting role for Team USA. After all, the 26-year-old had just come off a standout season, averaging 26.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game. His impressive performance earned him a spot as the only American on this year’s All-NBA First Team lineup.
This exceptional form carried over into the postseason, as the Boston Celtics dominated their opponents. The franchise never allowed any playoff series to extend beyond five games on their way to clinching their 18th title.
Tatum led the team in scoring with 111 points and in assists with 36, marking his best individual campaign yet.
Fans anticipated JT would start for Team USA alongside the clear-cut choices of LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, and Joel Embiid. While the other four eventually played crucial roles, it wasn’t the case for the Celtics talisman.
He was left out of the lineup for two of the six games, averaging only 17.7 minutes per game in the remaining four.
As a result, Teague argued that this dynamic might make NBA stars reconsider representing Team USA in the future. When a season as successful as Tatum’s couldn’t guarantee a spot in the starting five, players might start questioning the requirements.
Additionally, not everyone might handle being benched in the Olympics as professionally as JT did, leading to potential fall-outs.
That said, much of what happened this time had to do with the star power on the roster. Veterans like James, Curry, and Durant deservingly received special treatment for their contributions to the game for over a decade. The trio secured major playing time, leading to an imbalance in minutes for the rest of the team.
This might never happen again for decades. As a result, the players might view this year as an exceptional case, while considering committing to Team USA in the future.
