In Team USA’s first two games at the Paris Olympics, Steve Kerr made some tough decisions that have put him under the spotlight. During the opener against Serbia, he benched Jayson Tatum, the most recent NBA Champion, for the entire game. Then, against South Sudan, Kerr continued the trend and demoted Joel Embiid from his starting role to getting 0 minutes of playing time. While the NBA World continues to question Kerr’s strategy, veteran insider Brian Windhorst revealed why the head coach was forced to put the former MVP on the bench.

Spilling key details about the Embiid snub on ESPN, Windy revealed, “The matchup for this game required quickness and speed. That is not Joel Embiid. They went with a faster, longer starting lineup with Jayson Tatum and Anthony Davis in it”. While Embiid is a beast in the NBA, so far, his game has not transitioned well on the world stage. After struggling during the exhibition games, even getting fouled out against Canada, he was able to score only 4 points in the opener against Serbia. And Kerr had to pull him out of the game after just eleven minutes.

Moreover, with South Sudan’s fast-paced offense, Kerr couldn’t risk putting a relatively slower Embiid on the floor. And while fans are not used to seeing superstars like Embiid and Tatum on the bench, that might not affect Kerr’s strategy going forward. “It’s gonna continue to be this way because Steve Kerr is gonna change his lineups depending on the matchups,” Windy claimed.

So, don’t be surprised if you see your favorite superstar warming the bench in the upcoming games in Paris, as Kerr is only concerned about winning a gold medal. But it seems like Embiid won’t be the one facing the consequences next game as Kerr has already announced that he will be back in the starting lineup against Puerto Rico.

Steve Kerr is not bothered about the “NBA Soap Opera”

With Team USA stacked from one through twelve, some superstar is bound to have his minutes cut short every game. While Steve Kerr understands that he needs to keep all players engaged, winning the tournament is his top priority.

“The NBA is so popular worldwide. The regular season is kind of a soap opera, and we understand that. Social media takes over, and everything becomes so dramatic… That’s a regular season thing where the soap opera can carry the ratings, but here, it’s just win a damn gold medal, and every opponent is different. We’ve got options for everything, and we’re gonna use those options how we best see fit,” the head coach said in his latest interview.

More importantly, the whole point of having such a talented roster is that they can be mixed and matched in multiple ways as per the team’s needs. So, just for these few weeks, all the superstars might need to keep their egos aside and produce what’s asked of them, as per Kerr’s strategy.

“So, the beauty of the Olympics is none of that cr*p matters, and I know everyone’s gonna write about it, but none of that cr*p matters. We’re just trying to win, win every game, and win a gold medal”, Kerr added. Moreover, once Team USA is standing on the podium wearing gold around their necks, then that feeling will be far greater than some minor criticism leading up to that point. Do you agree? Do let us know if this decision-making is right or wrong in the comments below.

And before you go, do not forget to check out this crossover between BG12 and Georgia Bulldogs star Silas Demary Jr.