Bam Adebayo reacts to report of him possibly being benched vs. South Sudan with hilarious 50 Cent GIF
Ahead of Team USA's 2024 Paris Olympic group-phase matchup against South Sudan, it was widely speculated that Bam Adebayo could be benched. Instead, the star big man led the Americans in scoring as they clinched a quarterfinal berth. Afterward, Adebayo comically called out his skeptics on social media.
During Sunday's 110-84 Olympic-opening Group C victory over Serbia, Team USA coach Steve Kerr unexpectedly omitted superstar forward Jayson Tatum from his rotation. The veteran coach faced pressure to explain his decision postgame, chalking it up to "matchups" against a guard and big man-heavy Serbian squad.
However, Kerr pledged to reinsert Tatum into the rotation on Wednesday against a quicker, more athletic South Sudan team. Thus, many predicted one of the Americans' big men, such as Joel Embiid or Adebayo, would get benched.
Embiid proved to be the odd man out, going from starting against Serbia to getting a DNP against South Sudan. Meanwhile, Adebayo thrived off the bench, tallying a team-leading 18 points, seven rebounds, one steal, two blocks and two 3-pointers, shooting 80.0%.
Bam Adebayo's two-way production helped the Americans obtain a comfortable 103-86 victory to secure a quarterfinal berth, improving to 7-0 this summer, including five exhibition wins.
Following Wednesday's victory, Adebayo took to X/Twitter to react to ESPN's Brian Windhorst's Monday report about him potentially getting benched against South Sudan. The three-time NBA All-Star shared a GIF of the rapper 50 Cent, seemingly expressing disbelief.
Kerr's rotations are expected to remain fluid throughout the rest of the Olympics. However, after Wednesday's performance, Adebayo may have permanently secured his rotation spot.
Also Read: Steve Kerr explains tactical reason behind dropping Joel Embiid on the bench vs. South Sudan
Bam Adebayo on Team USA's bench dominance against South Sudan
In addition to Bam Adebayo's team-best 18 points, Team USA's bench, as a whole, thrived against South Sudan.
Three other players (Kevin Durant, Anthony Edwards and Derrick White) tallied double-figure points as the Americans finished with a 66-14 bench-scoring advantage.
After the impressive display, Adebayo lauded his team's consistent bench production through seven outings.
"We’ve been calling ourselves the bench mob for a long time now," Adebayo said. "And it doesn’t matter who’s in the lineup. We always seem to figure it out."
Depth was widely expected to be one of Team USA's top strengths amid its quest for a fifth straight Olympic gold medal. However, Adebayo and his teammates' apparent acceptance of their roles on the star-studded American roster has also seemingly benefited the squad.
Team USA concludes its group-phase schedule against Puerto Rico on Saturday before moving on to the tournament's quarterfinals. The Puerto Ricans have already been eliminated from quarterfinal contention, making the contest relatively inconsequential.
Also Read: Bam Adebayo explains the 2 reasons why he wears jersey no.13 for Team USA