Jayson Tatum being benched for Team USA’s first game in the 2024 Paris Olympics didn’t sit right with a lot of people — including Steve Kerr’s own Golden State Warriors players. And while Kerr said he simply went with the matchups that made the most sense to him, Paul Pierce thinks it goes deeper than just trying to make the best lineup.
“I don’t think this was humbling. This was more like a slap in the face,” Pierce said during an appearance on FS1′s “Undisputed.” “Think about this: After the game, Kerr was like, what was the word he used? He felt bad. Felt like an idiot, and then you try and sit (Joel) Embiid in the next game to kind of justify it. Like, ‘Look, I sat the MVP.’ Nah, that ain’t what this was.
“Just Celtic hate. Good old Celtic hate,” he added. “That’s all it’s ever been.”
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Team USA went on to win its first game against Serbia before Tatum made his way back into the lineup in the second game. Kerr also benched Embiid, and Jrue Holiday didn’t play on Saturday — though he’s reportedly dealing with an ankle injury.
And even though Derrick White and Holiday have been in the lineup consistently, Pierce said that Tatum is “the guy” for the Celtics and “there’s no team on planet Earth that Jayson Tatum shouldn’t get minutes on.”
“This guy is coming off a championship. He’s been first-team All-NBA for three straight years,” he said. “You know what that means? I’m one of the five best players on the planet. On the planet for the last three years. People think I’m one of the five best players on the planet, and I can’t get in a game?
“… Let me tell you something: Jayson Tatum matches up with everybody,” Pierce continued. “… He’s athletically gifted enough to guard all those positions. Humbling as he may put it, yeah, he can say those words, but I’m gonna say this was an insult. Pure insult to a player of his caliber.”
Team USA returns to action on Tuesday in the quarterfinals against Brazil. It will certainly be interesting to see what kind of lineup Kerr ends up going with, and if he leaves out any star players as the quest for a fifth straight gold medal continues.
