Coach Steve Kerr calls Devin Booker Team USA's 'unsung MVP' at Olympics

Throughout the Olympic process, the media always asked about the usual stars LeBron James, Steph Curry and Kevin Durant, but never really about a certain player who was important to this goal of the gold medal. Head coach Steve Kerr had one player to choose when he spoke to reporters after leading Team USA to victory over France.

When the Warriors strategist finished his press conference, he revealed that no one had ever asked him about Phoenix star Devin Booker. This coach made it clear that he is in love with the Suns guard, even calling him the “unknown MVP” of this squad.

“Devin Booker is an amazing basketball player,” Kerr said of the player who averaged 11.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and 3.3 assists in the Olympics, while shooting 56.8 percent from the field and 56.5 percent from the field. % from distance. “No one asked about him. He was our unsung MVP. I just wanted to say that.”

Steve Kerr on Devin Booker:

“He was our unsung MVP. I just wanted to say that.”

(with @BenGolliver) pic.twitter.com/3QBGSM2P97

— NBA News (@Nbanews109) August 11, 2024

Dwayne Wade, who was invited as a commentator on the Olympic submission, even called Booker as the future leader of the American men's basketball team. “In four years, Devin Booker is a guy who can lead this team,” said the Miami Heat icon, who was recently inducted into the Hall of Fame.

There's no way around it, now that the golden age is coming to an end. For example, both James and Kerr went from enemies to allies during this Olympics process after competing for several titles since the last decade, when Golden State and Cleveland produced one of the NBA's oldest rivalries.

“LeBron, what a blessing it was to finally coach him after all these years of coaching him and trying to find a way to beat him and watch him closely,” said the coach. “I said this a few weeks ago — to see his professionalism, how coachable he is, how gifted he is in all the parts of the game that he seems to know well, I'm very happy that I was able to coach him. these past six weeks and I'm a LeBron fan for life.”

The 39-year-old averaged 14.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 8.5 assists, and 1.3 steals in six contests. In the gold medal game, James dropped 14 points, six rebounds, 10 assists, and two steals in 33 minutes in their 98-87 final victory over France.

Despite his limited role for Team USA this summer, Jayson Tatum is sure to lead the national team in the future.

This Olympic run also marked the end of a generation that included stars like Curry and KD, so Jayson Tatum knows for sure that he will have plenty of opportunity to shine in the future. The Boston champion revealed that his limited role with Team USA this summer will not affect his decision to play for his country.

The Celtics forward did not participate in two of the six games at the Paris Olympics, including last Thursday's semifinal win over Serbia. During the gold medal game against France, he came off the bench in the first quarter and played 11 minutes in their victory, scoring two points and grabbing three rebounds.

“It was difficult on the court, but there is no decision I will make without emotions,” Tatum admitted. “If you ask me right now if I'm going to play in 2028 – that's four years from now again [would have] take time and think about that. So there's no decision I'm going to make based on what this experience was like or how I felt as an individual.”

On several occasions, Steve Kerr explained that his choice not to play Jayson was not based on performance. “A lot of people have been texting me and reaching out and saying 'Make sure this feeds you,' which I appreciate. There are many people who care about me,” said the player. “I think the hard part is yes, you can use things to blow you up, but I'm still human.”