Brian Windhorst said before Team USA’s game that Bam Adebayo could get benched against South Sudan. He noted that South Sudan’s composition of big men would require Team USA to play a more perimeter-oriented game, which could leave Bam Adebayo on the bench.
“South Sudan’s got a bunch of athletic wing players. Tatum’s going to be out there. They’re going to be switching all of those screens because they gotta play the perimeter and there may be a guy like Bam Adebayo that gets benched in that game.”
(2:14 Onward)
“South Sudan's got a bunch of athletic wing players. Tatum's gonna be out there. They're gonna be switching all of those screens because they gotta play the perimeter, and there may be a guy like Bam Adebayo that gets benched…”
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) July 29, 2024
After Team USA’s win over South Sudan, Bam Adebayo took to X, quoted Windhorst’s video, and added the iconic 50 Cent meme, in which he responds to Floyd Mayweather verbally assaulting him, by saying ‘What he say f*ck me for?’, suggesting that Bam thought this comment was unwarranted from Windhorst.
https://t.co/G9fQ57gAvT pic.twitter.com/qxTmCRUG5x
— 13am Adebayo (@Bam1of1) July 31, 2024
While Adebayo didn’t start the game, he had an electric performance coming off the bench, putting up 18 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks, and 1 steals. Adebayo shot incredibly from the field, making 80% of his shots, and even went 2-3 from the three-point line, something he isn’t known to do very often.
LeBron James was so impressed with Adebayo’s three-point shooting that he dubbed him the ‘New Splash Brother’, a reference to the iconic nickname that Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson earned during their time together as part of the Warriors dynasty when they were the best shooters in the NBA by some distance.
Joel Embiid Was Benched In Favor Of Bam Adebayo
One notable big man was benched against South Sudan, but it wasn’t Bam Adebayo. Joel Embiid, who at one point was named one of the guaranteed starters for Team USA, was benched for the entire game against South Sudan.
Some believe this is because Team USA chose to play a more perimeter-oriented game, as Windhorst suggested.
However, there are those who believe this is based on Embiid’s poor showing in Team USA’s opener against Serbia. In the opening game for Team USA, Embiid played just 11 minutes, putting up 4 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 block. He was the only player on Team USA’s starting line-up to have a negative plus-minus.
Steve Kerr tried to shut those talks down, as he spoke after the game and explained that he kept Embiid on the bench because of the speed that South Sudan played with and the constant switching his players would have to keep pace with during the game.
Steve Kerr has shown that being benched is not a sign that he doesn’t have faith in you, but rather that you are not the right fit for that game.
Jayson Tatum was benched in Team USA’s opener but got to start against South Sudan. Tatum even spoke about being benched in the opener, stating that it was a humbling experience.
It is very likely that Embiid will be back in the starting lineup for Team USA’s next game against Puerto Rico on Saturday, but this is a situation to keep your eye on.
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