Interesting insight, but not overly surprising as you note given the sentimentality surrounding some of these players. The Olympic game is very different from the NBA. The competition is much lower and the U.S. roster far more talented than what you would find in any ordinary NBA game.
These factors significantly reduce the risks associated with using - or not using - certain assets on the bench in certain games. In the end, it just isn't likely to be material to the outcome. So, it makes sense that emotions start to crowd out intellect to some degree in the decision-making. The substitutions here are bound to be different.
The lone exception for me, however, is Joel Embiid. He's not young and only a year removed from a supposed NBA MVP season. Steve Kerr is a highly regarded and very experienced and successful NBA coach. Unlike with other players, Kerr noting that Embiid's lack of playing time was due to South Sudan being "fast" with great team speed and playing an up-tempo game - is alarming.
The fact that a thoughtful and cerebral coach like Kerr is reticent to put Embiid into a game against South Sudan because of pace suggests that his lumbering style up and down the court is a hindrance to the flow of the team. It also implies that he was unwilling to do so no matter who was surrounding him on the floor...even future Hall of Famers.
Interesting insight, but not overly surprising as you note given the sentimentality surrounding some of these players. The Olympic game is very different from the NBA. The competition is much lower and the U.S. roster far more talented than what you would find in any ordinary NBA game.
These factors significantly reduce the risks associated with using - or not using - certain assets on the bench in certain games. In the end, it just isn't likely to be material to the outcome. So, it makes sense that emotions start to crowd out intellect to some degree in the decision-making. The substitutions here are bound to be different.
The lone exception for me, however, is Joel Embiid. He's not young and only a year removed from a supposed NBA MVP season. Steve Kerr is a highly regarded and very experienced and successful NBA coach. Unlike with other players, Kerr noting that Embiid's lack of playing time was due to South Sudan being "fast" with great team speed and playing an up-tempo game - is alarming.
The fact that a thoughtful and cerebral coach like Kerr is reticent to put Embiid into a game against South Sudan because of pace suggests that his lumbering style up and down the court is a hindrance to the flow of the team. It also implies that he was unwilling to do so no matter who was surrounding him on the floor...even future Hall of Famers.
If I were a Sixers fan, I would be concerned.