It’s tough for top NBA scorers to adapt to FIBA basketball, especially on a team full of stars.
Team USA had 10 out of 12 players who averaged over 20 points last season.
Sacrifices were necessary to make it work.
Carmelo Anthony pointed out that Jayson Tatum struggled to adjust in Paris. He praised Devin Booker for evolving but criticized Tatum for not doing the same.
Anthony’s Take:
“With Jayson Tatum, I don’t know if it was a role he was ready to accept,” Anthony said on his “7PM in Brooklyn” podcast. “Or if it was communicated to him what his role was. They wanted him to do what Devin Booker did โ be a stretch four, space the court, play defense, and that’s it. But if you’re not told your role and told to figure it out, right now if I get in the game I’m overthinking. We’re humans too. Basketball players are human, athletes are human.”
Anthony blamed Team USA’s coaches for not defining Tatum’s role clearly enough and felt bad for him getting two DNPs during six games in Paris. He said he’d “be pissed too” if he traveled all that way just to sit on the bench.
Fans might think this is unfair treatment of a talented player.
Tatum promised to use this experience as motivation for the next NBA season but never blamed the coaches publicly.
Anthony knows about making sacrifices at the Olympics since he had to adjust his style when playing with legends like Kobe Bryant and LeBron James.
What do you think about how Tatum was treated?
