That Steve Kerr...is ice cold baby!
They’re the Biggest Stars in the NBA. At the Olympics, They’re Sitting on the Bench.
The Americans are romping through the competition in the Paris Games. But the competition for playing time is hurting some feelings.
Kevin Durant, right, greets Jayson Tatum, left, and Derrick White, center, as he exits the game. Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE/Getty Images
By Robert O’Connell, WSJ
Aug. 6, 2024 9:54 am ET
At first glance, Team USA men’s basketball seems to be having a grand old time at these Olympics. The squad stuffed with a half-billion dollars’ worth of NBA All-Stars has breezed into the knockout round, led by the stellar play of LeBron James and Kevin Durant.
But it hasn’t been all smiles. Ever since they landed in Paris, some of the best basketball players on the planet have been forced to adjust to a strange new experience, one that’s even more foreign to them than a plate of frog legs.
For the first time in their lives, they’re being told to take a seat on the bench.
For most of these players, the only time they’re not on the court in NBA games is when they’re counting down the closing seconds of a blowout. But in his first Olympics as head coach, Steve Kerr has proved surprisingly willing to hurt the feelings of his superstar players.
The drama began before the Games even started, when Team USA’s leadership chose to leave Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown off the roster. Later, when a spot opened up because of an injury, they snubbed him again. It was an understandable decision—a team with James and Durant is well-stocked at forward. Except for one detail: Brown had just led the Celtics to an NBA championship and been crowned Finals MVP.
Then, in the opening U.S. Olympic game, Brown’s Celtics teammate, forward Jayson Tatum, didn’t see a single second of action in a 16-point win over Serbia. The next game, Joel Embiid, who had struggled during the team’s warm-up games, rode the pine. The 2023 NBA MVP clocked exactly zero minutes against South Sudan.
“It’s definitely a humbling experience,” Tatum said.
Back at home, players like Tatum and Embiid enjoy all the power they could want. NBA stars sign ever-growing contracts and hold ever-growing sway over the organizations they play for. They can form superteams, have coaches fired and demand trades.
As the knockout round opens with Tuesday’s game against Brazil, they’re like any high-schooler fighting for a varsity spot. And the reason that some of the most accomplished athletes in the world can’t find the floor is that Olympic basketball is no longer the walkover it used to be for America.
When Kerr brought the team together for a training camp in Las Vegas last month, he reminded them of the challengers awaiting them from around the world. Serbia has the reigning NBA MVP in Nikola Jokic. Canada features Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, one of the league’s brightest young scorers. France has 7-foot-4 phenom Victor Wembanyama.
The message was that the Games would require real strategy, forcing Kerr to search out the best matchups—and bench the players who didn’t fit.
“Chuck [Daly] and Michael [Jordan] had a great time together on game days, playing 36 holes,” Kerr said of the coach and star player on 1992’s Dream Team. “Those days are long gone. We have our hands full.”
Still, the players being demoted aren’t just NBA All-Stars. They’re some of the most successful athletes in professional sports. Less than a month before his benching, Tatum signed a $314 million contract extension with Boston that ranks as the biggest deal in the entire NBA.
It wasn’t enough to protect him from Olympic embarrassment.
“I’m not here to make a story about myself,” Tatum said after spending the Serbia game high-fiving teammates and handing out towels.
Since 1992, Olympic basketball has served a dual purpose for NBA players. They pursue gold medals, but they also look to solidify their place in the league’s hierarchy, showing that they can shine even on a roster stuffed with marquee talent.
Kerr has shown no patience for the NBA popularity contest.
“I would hope that our guys aren’t paying too much attention to that,” Kerr said. “That’s a regular-season thing where the soap opera can carry the ratings, but here it’s just: Win a damn gold medal.”
As Team USA tangles with a slew of past and possible future NBA MVPs in its quest for the gold, it’s likely not done bruising some of the healthiest egos in sports. For some players, that means the gold medal might come with a reputational trade-off.
“We got 12 guys that can go out and get the job done any given night,” James said after the last pre-knockout game.
How many will get that opportunity is another question.
Write to Robert O’Connell at robert.oconnell@wsj.com
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