The Ringer founder Bill Simmons talked to Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers on The Bill Simmons podcast after Team USA's gold medal-winning performance against France. One topic they discussed was Steve Kerr 's rotation.
The Team USA head coach became controversial for how he utilized his star-studded lineup. Most notoriously, Kerr benching Jayson Tatum in their two games against Serbia got the most criticism.
Simmons observed that of the twelve players on Team USA, Kerr trusted six of them to bring home the gold for the Stars and Stripes.
" The hierarchy, as it evolved, " said Simmons. "And we got to nut crunch time in both games, seemed to be Booker, Curry, LeBron, KD, and AD. But then Jrue kind of right here. It turned out those were the six guys."
Four twenty-minute guys on the team
Interestingly, the oldest player on the team, LeBron, played the most minutes at 24.5 per game. The only other three to log in at least 20 minutes per game were Curry, Durant, and Booker. Using cumulative minutes played, Lakers big man Anthony Davis ranked fifth after the four guys mentioned above, while Holiday, who missed one game due to injury, ranked eighth in total minutes.
Against France, Kerr played only 7 players in the 4th quarter, with Bam Adebayo briefly joining Kerr's six favorite players. But in those final three minutes of the game, the Golden State Warriors head coach went with LBJ, KD, Steph, AD, and Book to bring the gold home for Team USA.
"When you look at how they played, you can understand that was the clear six." Rivers agreed with Simmons. "I always love these like all-star game format, all these players. But then when it gets serious, the coach will tell you exactly what he thinks, who he thinks he can win with. And Steve Kerr, all the other games he was mixing and matching. But those medal games, you knew exactly who he trusted the most. And he did not waver from it."
Kerr didn't care about the criticism
Entering the medal games, Kerr talked to Rachel Nichols on 'Open Court' and the Team USA bench tactician said that he was going to keep doing what he had been doing in their final two games. That led to Tatum and Hali getting benched against Serbia in the semifinal game.
"Being in this position, you do what you have to do to win," Kerr said . "Who you play every game is a little different, based on your opponents…All 12 of these guys are worthy of playing the entire game. But it's just not how it works. So, we're gonna keep doing what we're doing and hopefully keep winning."
Not playing JT almost backfired, as they were two minutes away from being upset by Serbia. Luckily, Steph made Steve look like a genius. In the end, it was Team USA's veteran trinity that carried Kerr's team in the clutch, Curry especially. Despite the criticism, Kerr brought home the gold. And that's what really mattered.
Related: "Steph and Bron not tired" - Draymond Green criticizes Steve Kerr's rotations vs. Serbia
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