"F**king admitted to psych ward" - Former NBA All-Star bluntly slams Steve Kerr’s starting lineup choices for Olympics
Former NBA All-Star Kenyon Martin Sr. offered a candid critique of the starting lineup and rotation decisions of Steve Kerr for Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics during a discussion with Gilbert Arenas about who should be starting for the team.
Martin argued that there should never be a scenario where Jayson Tatum, a three-time consecutive All-NBA First Team player, receives a coach’s decision DNP (Did Not Play).
On the “Gil’s Arena” show, Martin posed a hypothetical question to Kerr about whether Tatum would ever be a DNP if he were on Kerr's NBA roster.
“If Jayson Tatum were ever on your roster, would there ever be a situation where he had a DNP? What the f**k makes you start now? This man is 1st Team All-NBA three years in a row,” Martin said.
“If it was announced that Jayson Tatum might not play, they should have had (Kerr) f*****g admitted to a psych ward. No, we're just going to put somebody in. Steve, you know what? We're going to send you back home, man. You're not well,” Martin added.
Martin further criticized Team USA for inviting Tatum to the Paris Olympics and then not giving him playing time.
“Are you messing with this man? He comes over here, spends time away from his family, and then doesn’t play?”
Tatum was a DNP in Team USA’s win against Serbia, and Steve Kerr later admitted he “felt like an idiot” for the decision, explaining that he chose lineup combinations he thought were best.
Tatum started in the final two group-stage games but returned to the bench for the quarterfinals.
Draymond Green also criticizes Steve Kerr’s decision to bench Tatum
Even Draymond Green, Steve Kerr’s player on the Golden State Warriors, took issue with the decision not to play Jayson Tatum in Team USA's first game of the 2024 Paris Olympics.
On “The Draymond Green Show,” Green said Kerr’s choice was a mistake.
"You don't not play Jayson Tatum," Green said. "That man just won an NBA championship, cover of NBA 2K, cover of Sports Illustrated, just signed the biggest contract in NBA history, oh and by the way, your reward is sit down and don't play in the first Olympic game."
“Not playing (Tatum) was wrong,” Green added. “We all know it was wrong. He should’ve played. He didn’t. But he should have. So, it was wrong, and we know that."
Steve Kerr has been adjusting his starting lineups, with Jrue Holiday and Joel Embiid alternating in and out of the starting five.
Team USA’s next game is the semifinals against Serbia on Thursday, with the winner advancing to the gold medal match.