Olympic men's basketball: Three takeaways from USA vs. Serbia

Team USA's men's basketball team advanced to the gold-medal game with a hard-fought 95-91 win over Serbia on Thursday at the Paris Games.

Steve Kerr's team will face France on Saturday for the gold. Serbia, meanwhile, will play Germany for the bronze medal, also on Saturday.

Here are three takeaways from the win by Team USA (5-0):

1. Steve Kerr benched Jayson Tatum again

Kerr received significant criticism after sitting Tatum for Team USA's opening game of the Olympics against Serbia. In the semifinals, facing the same opponent, Tatum once again found himself glued to the bench . Kerr's decision almost backfired, as the USA struggled in defensive coverages and Devin Booker failed to make an imprint on the game.

Outside of LeBron James, Tatum is the most complete player in Kerr's rotation. There's no reason for him not to play in every Olympic game.

2. Team USA's defense must improve

Team USA was consistently carved open by Serbia. The Americans failed to close out to shooters on rotations. They got beat off the dribble. They failed to secure defensive rebounds. Most importantly, they were cooked from the perimeter throughout the game.

France should have been watching that game with excitement. If the United States can't fix its defensive rotations and learn from its mistakes against Serbia, it will face an uphill battle to secure a gold medal against Victor Wembanyama and Co.

3. Steph Curry and LeBron James are a deadly duo

As long as Curry and James have been in the NBA, fans have dreamed about them on the same team. We finally got to see what the duo can do when both have a good game. Curry finished with 36 points and eight rebounds, while James had 16 points and 12 boards.

Kerr will need his veteran superstars to continue their excellent play when facing France. After all, Team USA's biggest advantage is its top-end talent and the sheer depth of its current roster. Curry and James are the head of the snake; it was nice to see them playing like it.