Team USA entered the 2024 Paris Olympics aiming to extend their gold medal streak, and they did just that by capturing their fifth consecutive gold. However, one of the challenges for head coach Steve Kerr was deciding who would get playing time, and surprisingly, Jayson Tatum was one of the players who saw limited minutes.
With a roster full of superstars, Kerr faced tough decisions when it came to rotations. In an interview with NBA.com’s Steve Aschburner, Kerr explained the situation and praised the professionalism shown by both Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton throughout the tournament.
“Those guys were all great,“ Kerr told Aschburner. “Jayson handled things so well. Then obviously it became a media subject, but he couldn’t have handled it better. Tyrese [Haliburton], same thing. Every game was different. And we talked about that from the first night – 12 superstars and probably only nine can play consistent minutes.”
“They handled themselves really professionally and pulled for each other. I couldn’t be prouder of them all,” Kerr concluded. In a lighthearted comment, Kerr joked about the potential backlash from Celtics fans: “I think they’re going to be all over me. [laughs] That’s fine.”
Gold medalists Tyrese Haliburton, Derrick White, and Jayson Tatum of Team United States pose with their medals. Jamie Squire/Getty Images
Draymond Green questions Kerr’s decision
On The Draymond Green Show, Draymond Green expressed his confusion about Tatum’s limited playing time. “With Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton not playing a single minute in game one, which was crazy,” Green said.
“You don’t not play Jayson Tatum. That man just won an NBA championship, he’s on the cover of NBA 2K, cover of Sports Illustrated saying cheers, just signed the biggest contract in NBA history,” Green continued. “Oh, by the way, your reward is to sit down and not play in the first Olympic game.”
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Charles Barkley also weighs in on Kerr’s call
NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley voiced his displeasure with Kerr’s decision on SiriusXM NBA Radio. “Everybody deserves to play at least 10 minutes,” Barkley said. “Chuck Daly did a fantastic job with the Dream Team in 1992. He had two starting units. He said, ‘You guys are gonna start when we’re playing against the best teams,’ and that included me and Michael [Jordan] and those guys.”
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Barkley added: “He also had a second starting five for certain games. He’d rotate us, saying, ‘You guys play the first ten minutes, you guys play the second ten minutes.’ That’s what we did, and none of us played over 25 minutes. You can’t expect everybody to practice hard and then not play in the Olympics. You have to give them 10-15 minutes along the way.”
