Social media buzzing as Warriors' Steve Kerr inflicts another brutal Olympic decision

Just days after controversially benching Jayson Tatum in Team USA's opening Olympic game against Serbia, Golden State Warriors' head coach Steve Kerr again raised eyebrows with another brutal rotation decision on Wednesday.

Whereas Tatum returned as a part of the starting lineup against South Sudan, it was the opposite for 2023 MVP Joel Embiid who not only lost his job as the team's starting center, but was the only player of the 12-man roster not to see a second of game-time in the 103-86 victory.

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has sent social media buzzing again with his decision to bench Joel Embiid against South Sudan

Embiid's benching appeared to be the right move from Kerr given both Anthony Davis and Bam Adebayo proved effective in a much stronger outing than what Team USA had produced against the same opponent just over a week ago.

Davis had eight points, seven rebounds and two blocks as the starting center in 19 minutes, while Adebayo was impressive with a team-high 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting to go with seven rebounds and two blocks of his own.

As usual social media preferred to focus on the contentious Embiid decision instead, along with a rough performance from Warriors star Stephen Curry who had just three points on 1-of-9 shooting in 21 minutes.

Kerr said in the aftermath (via Ben Golliver) that the decision stemmed from the wish to match up with the speed of South Sudan, confirming that Embiid will return to the starting lineup against Puero Rico on Friday.

Jrue Holiday is also set to return to the opening five after playing 15 minutes off the bench on Wednesday, leaving more speculation on where Tatum could fit in after scoring just four points in 17 minutes against South Sudan.

Embiid's role with Team USA has been a point of discussion dating back to the exhibition games, with the 30-year-old's lack of impact not overly surprising given Kerr's coaching style. Golden State have never prioritized offensive-minded centers over the past decade, largely preferring to have defensive-minded, elite passing big men who can complement the perimeter threat led by Curry.

Following the opening game against Serbia, Alexandros Tsakos of The Sixer Sense detailed how the Olympics were revealing the ugly flaws in Embiid's game, most notably his inability to fit into a secondary offensive role on a star-studded team.

It will be interesting to see how much Kerr utilizes Embiid moving forward, with a clear balance needing to be found between the contrasting styles of both player and team.