American basketball stars bracing to face improved international competition

Gold medals in Olympic men’s basketball are historically Team USA’s to lose. Marching into the Paris games with a stacked roster that features LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Joel Embiid and Jayson Tatum, led by four-time NBA championship head coach Steve Kerr, this summer’s tournament will be no different.

“A lot of respect for France and Paris for giving us this opportunity to showcase our talents, but we’re here for USA and we’re ready to go out and compete at a high level,” James said.

International talent, however, is far from what it used to be. France’s Victor Wembanyama being selected No. 1 overall in the 2023 NBA draft, and fellow countrymen Zaccharie Risacher and Alex Sarr coming off the board at No. 1 and No. 2 in this year’s draft, is proof of that.

Further is the pure dominance of Serbian center Nikola Jokić and Greek forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, who have captured five of the past six NBA MVPs. An American-born player has not won that award since James Harden in 2017-18.

So, the field the Americans will face in Paris will be deeper than ever. Their path to gold will be contested by far better talent then what they have faced in the past.

“Our game is global now, all of these guys are huge stars in ways,” Durant said. “We are playing against like 65 or 64 NBA players. They are all the best in the world.”

For starters, Team Canada, led by first-year Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez, also has a roster stacked with NBA talent that features league MVP runner-up Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder, NBA champion Jamal Murray of the Denver Nuggets, and solid role players like Dillon Brooks, RJ Barrett, Dwight Powell, Andrew Nembhard and Luguentz Dort.

Serbia has Jokic. Greece has Antetokounmpo. And even Germany’s roster features four NBA players in Brooklyn’s Dennis Schroder, New Orleans’ Daniel Theis and Orlando’s Wagner brothers.

Team USA was almost bested three times in exhibition play, needing late-game heroics to outlast Australia, South Sudan and Germany. Some of the team’s struggles could be attributed to rust, or a new group of players still trying to build camaraderie and work out the kinks. Or it could be a sign of what is to come in the Paris games, as international opponents are more confident in their ability to take them down.

“There’s a respect of what everybody has done in their career,” Curry said. “When you compete against people, when you play with them, you see them in different aspects throughout your NBA journey.

“You learn a lot about people and that familiarity only helps us in this situation, because one, you know everybody’s going to approach it the right way, prepare themselves mentally, physically, to be able to hoop and come with the right energy of just trying to win.”

James, who will be competing for his third gold medal at 39 years old, and American tennis star Coco Gauff carried the American flag for the United States during Friday’s opening ceremony along the River Seine.

“I mean, it’s an honor, obviously,” James said. “To go back to my hometown, our communities, all our communities, and for myself and Coco to be able to represent our country, us being Black kids as well, representing our culture and where we come from, it gives everybody so much hope where we come from and that’s all we can ask for.

“So, we take it with the utmost responsibility and the utmost honor.”

Rounding out the Team USA men’s basketball roster is Bam Adebayo of the Miami Heat, Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns, Anthony Davis of the Los Angeles Lakers, Anthony Edwards of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers, and Jrue Holiday and Derrick White of the Boston Celtics.

Kerr will be assisted by Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra, Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue and Gonzaga head coach Mark Few.

Team USA will begin play on Sunday against Serbia, followed by group play matchups against South Sudan on Wednesday and Puerto Rico on Saturday.