On Sunday afternoon, Jayson Tatum sat on the bench and watched Crew USA blow out Serbia, with out even having to take off his warm-ups.
He wasn’t damage, and he wasn’t sick — for perhaps the primary time in his profession, he merely fell out of the rotation. In flip, regardless of America’s dominant victory, the nationwide storyline turned the DNP.
Overwhelmingly, media and followers alike between blasted Steve Kerr’s choice to maintain the five-time All Star totally out of the lineup.
“The reigning defending NBA champion Jayson Tatum — and you may’t discover minutes?” Stephen A. Smith yelled on his present. “In a 26-point lopsided victory, you’ll be able to’t discover one minute?”
ESPN analyst Tim Legler criticized the teaching employees’s choice to bench a famous person of his caliber in a extra pointed approach, citing the truth that Derrick White performed quarter-hour, whereas Jayson Tatum by no means even checked into the sport.
“Derrick White simply joined the crew,” Tim Legler stated on the All NBA podcast. “Derrick White was the fifth greatest participant on his personal crew.”
Espn analyst Tim legler says that Steve Kerr benching Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum in opposition to Serbia in the present day was extremely disrespectful Derrick White acquired 15 minutes and he’s a fifth choice on the Celtics pic.twitter.com/qSH8kz0Znv
— joebuddenclips (@Chatnigga101) July 28, 2024
However, the truth is that Derrick White wasn’t the rationale that Tatum didn’t play. Crew USA enjoys some fairly outstanding depth on the ahead place, and Lebron James and Kevin Durant had been each distinctive in opposition to Serbia, combining for 45 factors on 17-21 capturing. Plus, as head coach of the Warriors, Kerr famously choose three-guard lineups — and he’s continued to lean into that choice with USA Basketball, choosing heavier doses of Devin Booker, Anthony Edwards, Steph Curry and Jrue Vacation. Perhaps these explanations make sense, perhaps they don’t.
Regardless, the dialog round this recreation from a Celtics lens shouldn’t have completely centered round Tatum’s lack of minutes.
In 16 minutes off the bench, Derrick White performed tenacious protection, racking up two steals and a block. Crew USA outscored Serbia by 15 when he was on the courtroom. His efficiency and solidified rotation spot, nonetheless, turned an afterthought. In exhibition play in opposition to South Sudan, White helped change the momentum of the sport, allotting 5 assists in 11 second-half minutes, and serving to safe a game-saving cease on the ultimate possession.
For the second time in lower than a month, Derrick White’s accomplishments have been diminished in effort to raise his Celtics teammates. When Kawhi Leonard was a late scratch from the Olympics crew, White’s substitute wasn’t sufficiently celebrated by the Celtics world, as a result of the discourse centered round Jaylen Brown’s omission. A few of that was undeniably a few of Brown’s doing, however the broader dialog nonetheless failed to spotlight the two-way worth that somebody like Derrick White might deliver to the crew.
Derrick White will let you know the surface noise doesn’t affect him — final month, his father confirmed to CelticsBlog his son instructed him he was simply going to remain true to himself.
“There’s all the time going to be some type of chatter or buzz about one thing,” Richard White stated. “This complete 12 months, there was all the time stuff being stated. He goes and he controls what he can management.”
Nonetheless, one thing particular is occurring to probably the most beloved gamers in Boston, and it’s not getting the popularity it deserves. A participant who couldn’t even get a Division I provide out of highschool has solidified himself as probably the most invaluable guards on a U.S. Olympic basketball crew pursuing a gold medal.
And it’s not simply White both — Jrue Vacation was the crew’s second-leading scorer with 15 factors, and headlined the stifling protection together with his full-court strain. The elite play of the championship backcourt has been missed, albeit maybe inadvertently — but it surely’s one thing that Celtics followers ought to have a good time. White and Vacation’s play was instrumental in securing Banner 18, and will show to be equally important en path to an Olympic gold.
It’s the character of the information cycle: harp on the unfavorable, break down the controversy, level fingers, and debate who has been disrespected. Controversy sells, and Steve Kerr created an enormous one whether or not or not he realized the backlash that may observe. And, it’s simple that the Jayson Tatum benching storyline is an intriguing one — it’s extremely uncommon for a participant of his caliber, and together with his resume, to sit down on the sidelines for a whole basketball recreation.
However, if it’s the one Celtic storyline, we’ve missed a possibility to offer credit score the place it’s due and benefit from the play of two of probably the most well-rounded guards in all of basketball. Vacation and White have each been fairly good to this point, and from a protracted record of proficient American guards — one that features Kyrie Irving, Damian Lillard, Donovan Mitchell, and numerous others — it’s the Celtics’ championship backcourt that has anchored Crew USA early on within the Olympics.
Olympic play will proceed, and new storylines will emerge. Perhaps Jayson Tatum will get 20 minutes of motion in opposition to South Sudan, or perhaps the DNPs will proceed to pile up. Regardless, I’d urge those that observe the Celtics to acknowledge and respect how outstanding it’s that the identical two position gamers who helped safe the NBA championship are getting the prospect to showcase on the Olympics that they’re the perfect position gamers on this planet.