Steve Kerr cost the United States the FIBA World Cup by not playing Walker Kessler

The United States fell to Germany at the FIBA World Cup due to a lack of defense, and that’s all on Steve Kerr for not playing Walker Kessler.

Somehow we all knew this was going to happen. The United States lost to Germany in the semi-finals of the FIBA World Cup, and it was all down to a lack of defense from the inside on behalf of the United States squad. Despite having Jaren Jackson Jr. and Mikal Bridges, the US couldn’t slow Germany’s onslaught in the paint. And shockingly, Walker Kessler never saw the court.

Between the Wagner brothers, Dennis Schroeder and Daniel Thies, the German team made it a point to attack the paint. Half of their points scored came from inside the three-point line, and many of those came in the paint. The United States squad needed instant defense and wasn’t getting it from anyone on the court.

But one man on the bench could’ve changed the tides of the game, the Utah Jazz’s Walker Kessler. Kessler is known for his defensive aptitude but for some reason, Kerr has been adamant about not playing the defensive-minded big all tournament long.

Some of it may go back to the fact that for the majority of his time in Golden State, he hasn’t had a traditional center. The team really didn’t have a true center after they traded away Andrew Bogut, that was until they drafted James Wiseman. But the Warriors tanked his time with the team and traded him for next to nothing.

Kerr loves to play the small ball style of game, and it works from time to time, but when he’s faced to gameplan against a team like Germany, who just threw big body after big body at Team USA’s defenses, it’s clear that his philosophy doesn’t always work. Especially when Steph Curry isn’t on the court to help you out-pace teams who try to live and die by twos.

No one on Team USA, offensively speaking, is on Curry’s level when it comes to scoring, so of course the Americans couldn’t out-shoot the Germans. That’s a very player-specific idea. If the Warriors don’t have Curry, Kerr’s four rings do not happen.

Kessler may not have led the United States to a victory, we can’t assume that, but we do know that Kessler is very good on defense, and the Americans allowed the Germans to make 68% of the time they shot from within the three-point line. So while we can’t say for sure that the US wins with Kessler in the game, we can say that they should’ve found out if Kessler could’ve helped at all.

Not playing Kessler in a blowout is one thing, not playing him in a game where you needed defense on the inside is another. It’s clear that Kerr’s scheme isn’t championship material unless he has Curry to bail him out. Next tournament, the Americans need a coach who understands you need centers still, and will use them as needed.

Kessler could’ve helped. The Americans lost by two, and if you really don’t think Kessler could’ve stopped at minimum two of those shots from going in, then you really aren’t watching enough basketball. Kessler could’ve turned the tide defensively.

Would he have helped things offensively? No, but Team USA shot 70% from the floor. They didn’t need Kessler to be Nikola Jokic, they needed him to be Ben Wallace, which is something he’s very capable of being.

But Kerr’s dislike of centers is going to hold back the Americans going forward. We’ve seen time and time again in recent years how vital centers are to the modern NBA game, it’s a shame that Kerr refuses to adapt to the changing times.