Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton were not called upon to contribute at all during Team USA’s blowout win on Sunday, and many fans thought that was downright hilarious.
Tatum and Haliburton both played significant minutes in Team USA’s five exhibition games leading up to the Summer Olympics in Paris, but neither was a part of head coach Steve Kerr’s rotation in Sunday’s 110-84 win over Serbia.
The memes were ruthless:
Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum when it comes to handing Bron and KD Gatorade bottles pic.twitter.com/Ld3CjyOTMP
— G(rįžźGõät)🧣 (@grizzgoatsports) July 28, 2024
Jayson Tatum Olympic Opener:
0 Minutes
18 Gatorade Assists
12 Towels Passed
10 FrownsWATERBOY TRIPLE DOUBLE 🥶🥶🥶 pic.twitter.com/vWiuodGU6B
— Hater Central (@TheHateCentral) July 28, 2024
Jalen Brunson just scored the same number of points as Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton COMBINED in the first half for Team USA 🤯
Jalen Brunson has a broken hand. pic.twitter.com/7qcz4j5KJj
— KnicksMuse (@KnicksMuse) July 28, 2024
Jayson Tatum 2024 olympic men’s basketball highlights 🔥 pic.twitter.com/0DFXdVo30u
— trace (@wakeuptrace) July 28, 2024
Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton highlights vs Serbia 🔥🔥
— Hater Report (@HaterReport_) July 28, 2024
BREAKING: Jayson Tatum passed 300 gatorade cups to his teammates, breaking Thanasis Antetokounmpo’s record. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/ve4bwJoIvz
— NBACentel (@TheNBACentel) July 28, 2024
Most people were more surprised by Tatum’s “did not play” than Haliburton’s, and Kerr’s explanation probably did not provide much clarity.
Team USA cruised to a blowout win, which they likely would have done if Tatum and/or Haliburton played as well. It will be interesting to see if either player remains out of the rotation altogether going forward.
