Joel Embiid Got Benched, Derrick White Became A National Hero And Team USA Punched Their Ticket To The Knockout Stage After Blowing Out South Sudan
While the tune up game between Team USA and South Sudan went down to the wire, that was most certainly not the case today in their matchup that actually counted. The biggest difference of course was Steve Kerr's adjustment to his starting lineup, removing Joel Embiid and Jrue Holiday and inserting AD and Tatum, which seemed to work out just fine. In my opinion Team USA's best lineup is still Steph/Tatum/KD/LeBron/AD, but who knows if Kerr ever gets there.
And while the internet is going to get their jokes off about Embiid's benching and then ensuing DNP-CD, I'm going to have the same stance with him as I did when Steve Kerr did this to Jayson Tatum/Haliburton. It's bullshit. Hide behind "matchups" all you want, but if you remember Kerr told us it was impossible to play more than 10 in a 40 minute game only to turn around and play 11 today, with Embiid being the only player to not see the floor. I'm not going to tell you Embiid has been all that good for Team USA so far, but there's no reason you can play 11 and not 12, especially when AD sneaky tweaked his ankle. Now Kerr has opened up this can of worms again, this time surrounding Embiid, and for what? Team USA couldn't beat South Sudan if Embiid played? Grow up. It's all just an unnecessary distraction that is completely avoidable yet Kerr seems obsessed with doing it. Very strange.
In terms of those who did play? I suppose it's not a great sign for the rest of the world when Steph Curry can go 1-9 (0-6) and LeBron finishes with more TOs (6) than FGM (5), and KD only went 2-5 (still had 14 points), yet Team USA still wins by 17 points after some garbage time South Sudan makes. Call me crazy, but I can't imagine those things are going to happen too many more times during these Games, and it just goes to show you how deep this roster really is. Hell, two of the main bench guys in Jrue Holiday and Jayson Tatum scored a combined 9 points and that didn't even matter either!
Why? Simple. Derrick White and Bam Adebayo were the two best players on the floor and I'm not sure it was close
(This tweet actually doesn't even tell the full story because White also finished with at least 3 blocks, but FIBA only credited him with 1)
As most things do with both players, everything started defensively. Being able to throw out a unit with Jrue/White/Bam all on the floor together makes it virtually impossible to score on, and it's no surprise that it was that unit that really extended the lead and put South Sudan away for good. The chemistry with White/Bam was really the story of the game, especially their two man game coming off screens
It was pretty clear right from the opening tip that Team USA played with WAY more respect for South Sudan compared to what we saw in the tune up game, and it was a reminder that when these guys take their opponent seriously and truly lock in, nobody in the world is even close. For that to be the case even when Team USA doesn't even execute to their potential is a great sign moving forward, and each time South Sudan tried to make a run there was an immediate response. No fucking around and finding out today unlike their game 11 days ago, so that was nice to see.
Now for some other things that stood out after another dominant win
- Devin Booker is having a hell of an Olympics so far, and I feel like that deserves acknowledgment. He's shot has been solid which is crucial for spacing purposes, but he's actually also doing a lot more than just being an off ball shooter, which is why so far his minutes feel warranted to me
He's a guy that many seem confused as to why he keeps starting/playing so much, but to his credit he's been great.
- Now back in the lineup, Jayson Tatum's outside shot is still as broken as ever. Maybe it was nerves or what, but that wide open look from the corner hitting the backboard wasn't all that great. I thought he was able to make an impact in other areas (5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block) and he ended the night 2-4 from the floor, but offensively he doesn't quite look like himself. If he's going to be the glue guy in that starting unit who does all the little things that's fine by me, I would just like to see him make an open shot from deep since I feel like we haven't seen that since March.
- I'm not really sure what the obsession is with having everything offensively run through LeBron/a point forward on what seems like every possession. You have guards for a reason Steve! One of which is on your team! LeBron's been pretty careless with the basketball so far, Ant is still holding onto the ball WAY too long rather than keeping it moving, and frankly, Team USA's offense still looks pretty gross for long stretches. It hasn't mattered yet, but now that they're onto the knockout stage it has to get better going up against tougher competition.
- It's going to be pretty hard to keep AD out of the starting lineup at this point. We all saw it since the tune up games, but he's the best fit for how FIBA basketball is played given what he can do on both ends of the floor.
There's no denying him at the 5 allows Team USA to play faster, they're more versatile given he can guard the perimeter as well as any big in the league, and he can make his FTs. As long as his ankle is nothing serious, I can't see not starting him the rest of the way.
After a 26 and then a 17 point win, Team USA has punched their ticket to the knockout round and I still don't think they've come close to playing their best basketball yet. Just imagine what things look like once that happens?