The United States men’s basketball team recorded victory in their first game of the 2024 Paris Olympics, taking down Nikola Jokic and Serbia with a dominant 110-84 final score.
The U.S. squad is absolutely stacked with superstar talent. As a result, some players found themselves riding the bench in Game 1.
Reigning NBA champion Jayson Tatum didn’t take the court for a single minute in Sunday’s game.
Team USA head coach Steve Kerr addressed Tatum’s benching after the game. In doing so, the Golden State Warriors leader announced a decision on Tatum’s playing time moving forward.
Tatum will take the court for the United States in future games.
“It’s tough, but Jayson handled it really well,” Kerr said.
“I talked to him today before the game [and told him] it may play out that way with Kevin [Durant] coming back and the lineups I wanted to get to.”
“That will change,” Kerr continued.
“Jayson’s going to play. Every game’s going to be different based on matchups. He’s a total pro, First-Team All-NBA three years in a row. I felt like an idiot not playing him, but in a 40 minute game you can’t play more than 10 [players]. You really can’t.”
The United States will face off against South Sudan in another group play matchup on Wednesday.
