Steve Kerr: US fans would be ‘ashamed’ if we won Olympic silver | News, scores, highlights, stats and rumors

Steve Kerr, head coach of the United States men’s basketball team, said American fans would be “ashamed” of the team if it took home a silver medal at the Summer Olympics.

Kerr made the comments on NBC after Team USA defeated France 98-87 in Paris on Saturday to win the gold medal.

“We have the most incredible group of players,” Kerr said. “They were all so selfless through this whole thing, through all the noise, through all the pressure. I think we’re probably the only team in the world where the fans are embarrassed for them when they get a silver medal. That’s the pressure we’re under. But our players, and you saw Steph, they love the pressure. They appreciated this atmosphere and they were fantastic.”

France cut the American lead to 82-79 in the fourth quarter, but Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry was too strong in the final quarter, making four three-pointers in the final three minutes for a team-high 24 points.

Team USA rolled into the Olympics with four consecutive gold medals in men’s basketball. Given the proliferation of world-class talent on the team, the team entered Paris as the odds-on favorite to win the gold medal. That was inevitable with the likes of Curry, LeBron James and Kevin Durant on the roster, along with a host of other great players.

Despite some hiccups, the Americans went 5-0 on an exhibition tour to Paris. Team USA went 3-0 in the group stage, outscoring its opponents by 64 points. The Americans then crushed Brazil 122-87 in the quarterfinals.

However, the Americans needed a miraculous comeback against Serbia in the quarterfinals to survive, starting the fourth quarter with a 13-point deficit and winning 95-91.

The United States held the gold medal for most of the game, but had some nervous moments in the fourth period. Curry was simply too good at the end of the game in his first-ever Olympic appearance, leading the team to gold again.

Ultimately, Kerr is probably right, in that Team USA fans would have been bitterly disappointed with anything other than gold. That won’t be a problem, though, as the Americans finish a 6-0 Olympics and once again take home top honors.