A roster featuring the best American basketball talents has been brought together for the Paris Olympics, aiming to secure Team USA’s fifth consecutive gold medal. This iteration of the USA’s basketball men’s team is a dream team in all but name.
USA Basketball Announces Star-Studded Team For Olympics
USA Basketball on Wednesday announced its men’s basketball team for this summer’s Olympics in Paris. The list is headlined by LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant. Bam Adebayo, Devin Booker, Joel Embiid, Jayson Tatum, Anthony Davis, Jrue Holiday, Tyrese Haliburton, Anthony Edwards, and Kawhi Leonard round off the 12-man roster.
“I’m grateful to these 12 men for their commitment to represent USA Basketball,” USA Basketball managing director Grant Hill said in a statement. “The United States is home to some of the best basketball players in the world, and I appreciate the vast interest in being part of this roster. These decisions weren’t easy, but it was a pleasure to go through the process and reach this outcome. We have the utmost respect for the level of competition we will face this summer,” Hill said. “The Olympics represent the pinnacle of sport, and the world will be watching the USA as we play in the toughest basketball tournament in history.”
Yesterday, NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN released a report detailing an 11-man list of players locked in for the Olympics team. There was some speculation about who will fill the 12th spot. With this official release, Kawhi Leonard will round up the roster.
The team’s coaching staff will be led by Steve Kerr. He will be assisted by Tyrone Lue, Erik Spoelstra, and Mark Few. Steve Kerr will be looking to win his first medal as the head coach of the USA Basketball men’s team after a fourth-place finish at last year’s FIBA World Cup.
Dream Team-esque
The level of talent showcased in the U.S. lineup is remarkable. Among the 12 selected players, seven concluded the season ranked within the top 15 scorers per game in the NBA. Ten were recognized as All-Stars during the season.
LeBron is among the all-time greats of the sport, the highest scorers in professional basketball history, and considered by many to be in the GOAT conversation. Steph is the all-time leader in 3-pointers and a top-10 player all-time in most people’s books.
Kevin Durant is another all-time great, currently sitting eighth on the all-time scorers list, less than 200 points away from surpassing the 30,000 points mark for his career. Interestingly, he could become the first men’s player to win four gold medals. He currently is tied for the most with Carmelo Anthony.
Among the team members, some players have a pedigree of winning gold at the Olympics. As mentioned earlier, Durant has three. LeBron James holds two, and Adebayo, Booker, Holiday, Tatum, and Booker each possess one.
The United States has clinched the gold medal in the last four Olympic Games and maintains its top rank globally by FIBA, despite not medaling in the two most recent World Cups. In 2019, the team placed seventh in China, followed by a fourth-place finish in Manila last summer.
The U.S. men’s basketball team has participated in the Olympics 19 times, securing a total of 19 medals — 16 gold, one silver, and two bronze.
The Last Word
Several nations will be competing for gold in Paris. Victor Wembanyama will boost the chances of host nation, France. Two-time MVP Nikola Jokic will lead Serbia. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jamal Murray will be hoping to lead Canada to its first Olympic medal ever. One can’t ignore the reigning World Cup champions, Germany. Ultimately though, the American squad boasts a wealth of NBA talent unmatched by any other nation.
