It looks like everybody related to basketball has voiced their opinion about Steve Kerr benching Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum in Crew USA’s males’s basketball opener towards Serbia on Sunday.
Celtics champion Kendrick Perkins, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, and retired NBA ahead Matt Barnes questioned why Kerr would not play Tatum in Crew USA’s blowout win, and Colin Cowherd weighed in that the Celtics ahead is “manner on the again” of the league’s high gamers.
ESPN’s Frank Isola introduced up a very attention-grabbing truth when he mentioned why Tatum did not play on SiriusXM’s NBA radio on Monday.
“Of the fellows on the present (Crew USA) roster, nobody acquired extra MVP votes for the (2023-24) season than Jayson Tatum. Hold that in thoughts,” Isola mentioned. “He is coming off a yr, or he is simply a few months faraway from profitable an NBA championship the place he was actually near in all probability being the MVP … it ended up being Jaylen Brown, who’s not even on the crew, however that is one other story totally we can’t get into.”
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Isola understands that when you have got a roster of superstars, not everybody goes to play each recreation, however he does not perceive why Tatum could be the participant who rides the bench.
“I get it. I perceive it is gonna be 10 guys,” he mentioned. “… Steve Kerr has obtained to make these robust calls, but it surely’s gotta be Jayson Tatum? … I perceive what Steve Kerr is doing, however how do you attain the conclusion that it needs to be Tatum simply primarily based on what everybody on the crew has completed over the past couple of months. He’ll be the odd man out? I am not saying Lebron (James) needs to be the odd man out or Kevin Durant, however how is Jayson Tatum the odd man out?”
Tatum is anticipated to get some enjoying time in Crew USA’s matchup with South Sudan on Wednesday, per The Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach.
