Jul 10, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; USA ahead Jayson Tatum (10) seems on within the third quarter in opposition to Canada within the USA Basketball Showcase at T-Cell Enviornment. Necessary Credit score: Candice Ward-USA TODAY Sports activities Workforce USA coach Steve Kerr mentioned All-NBA ahead Jayson Tatum will make his Paris Olympics debut on Wednesday in opposition to South Sudan.
Tatum, coming off a championship season with the Boston Celtics, didn’t play on Sunday when the U.S. opened pool play with a 110-84 victory in opposition to Serbia.
Kerr confirmed that he met with Tatum earlier than Sunday’s recreation to clarify why he was the odd man out, primarily based on the teaching workers’s assessment of matchups and lineup combos in opposition to Serbia.
“Jayson will play (Wednesday),” Kerr instructed reporters Monday. “I am not going to reply your subsequent query, which is that if he performs, who would not. However we will want him, and a part of this job for me is to maintain everyone engaged and prepared, as a result of my expertise with that is loopy stuff occurs.”
Kevin Durant scored 23 factors in 17 minutes off the bench and LeBron James added 21 within the victory in opposition to Nikola Jokic and the Serbian squad.
“The toughest a part of this job is you are sitting at the very least a few guys who’re world-class, among the absolute best gamers on Earth,” Kerr mentioned. “On one hand, it is senseless in any respect. On the opposite, I am asking these guys to only decide to successful one recreation after which transfer on to the subsequent one. I’ve to do the identical factor. And so I felt like final night time these had been the mixtures that made essentially the most sense.”
Tatum, who helped Workforce USA win gold on the Tokyo Video games, averaged 26.9 factors, 8.1 rebounds and 4.9 assists for the Celtics in 2023-24.
His athleticism and switchable protection could possibly be important in opposition to a South Sudan squad loaded with 3-point shooters who can unfold the ground. Tatum had 9 factors in 16 minutes in a 101-100 win in opposition to South Sudan in final week’s exhibition recreation in London.
“With South Sudan, it is extra concerning the pace, and pace is a killer,” Kerr mentioned. “It’s important to be ready for the whole lot, and which means we want everyone.”
–Area Degree Media
