What the fans expected to be an interesting game was a defining victory for Team USA. The Sudanese couldn’t keep up with the Americans this time around after a tough game, 103-86. Of course, KD‘s return played a huge role, dropping 14 points along with his biggest fan Edwards, who had 13 for the night but was rather inconsistent. Nevertheless, Steve Kerr’s squad has improved to 2-0 and is a win away from topping Group C. The win over the Sudanese, however, was led by Bam, who was feeling it from beyond the arc.

Adebayo drained two triples in the second quarter, adding 14 of his 18 points in the first half. The center finished the game with 18 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 blocks while shooting 80% from the field! Now, a lot of conclusions have come from this game. Firstly, KD has been the key offensively alongside LeBron James. The two forwards have carried the flow of the offense in the last two games. On the other hand, guys like Booker and White have been pretty consistent from the field, with Derrick handling both ends of the floor.

Coach Kerr finally gave Haliburton his first minutes (8) in the Olympics, and the youngster didn’t disappoint, draining back-to-back triples. However, one of the protagonists of this squad, Stephen Curry, has been visibly struggling. Steve Kerr hoped to get his Warrior going, but it didn’t go as planned. He finished the game with a mere 3 points and 4 assists, going 0-6 from beyond the arc.

The Splash Brother had a decent night against Serbia when he added 11 points, but the Sudanese weren’t ready to give him any room to breathe. The Chef was suffocating while trying to get to his spot, hunted by double-teams and traps. But on the brighter side, his off-ball threat seemed to have helped a lot on the offensive end. Lastly, the All-Star who didn’t play against South Sudan was Joel Embiid. Post-game, Steve Kerr said, “This is the fastest team in the tournament we’re going to play.”

“We wanted to match up. They made 14 threes against us in London. The whole game today was going to be about switching and staying in front of people,” he concluded, on the other hand, “Kerr will start LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday and Embiid versus Puerto Rico on Friday,” via a Ben Golliver report.

Recently, Jayson Tatum sat the whole game against Serbia, which was part of Kerr’s game plan. However, this time, it was Joel Embiid’s turn. Anthony Davis was in charge instead of The Process today and had quite the night. Amid all the tactical chaos, Steph will seem to maintain his position in the starting roster. However, what could be the idea behind these DNPs in each game?

The logic behind Steve Kerr’s list of DNPs in Team USA

Two games into the group stage, Team USA is on track to top it and make their way to the Quarter-Final round, easily. Now, as Steve Kerr clarified again, the goal is to win gold. “They’re pros & committed to each other…I don’t read social media. I would hope our guys aren’t paying too much attention to that.”

“That’s a regular season thing where the soap opera can carry the ratings. Here, it’s just win a damn gold,” he concluded. If, at a certain point, it means resting a player on the bench, it would create a lot of controversy, but then again, it is part of a plan that worked quite efficiently for the last two games. Factually, Kerr and Team USA have remained unbeaten throughout the showcase games and the group stage. Not only that but as they move on to play Puerto Rico, fans can expect another All-Star to sit out.

Who will it be? Well, that depends on how coach Kerr views the Puerto Rican team. It will be interesting to see who coach Kerr decides to rest in the next matchup. What are your thoughts on Kerr’s rotation? Let us know in the comments.

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