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Last week, USA Basketball selected the finalists for the 2024 Paris Olympic men’s basketball team.
There are 41 names on the list, including key players who did not participate in the last Olympics: LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Joel Embiid, Jayson Tatum, Damian Lillard, Jimmy Butler, and James. – Harden, Kawhi Leonard, Anthony Davis, Paul George.
USA TODAY Sports has learned everyone on the list is seriously considering going to Paris, with big names in talks about playing together for U.S. coach Steve Kerr in the summer. . Names were not on the list for reasons of appearance or respect.
Multiple people spoke to USA TODAY Sports on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the players’ plans publicly.
If the 1992 U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team was the Dream Team and the 2008 team was the Redeem Team, the 2024 squad could be the Supreme Team.
The 2024 team has the potential to be the most star-studded U.S. men’s Olympic roster since the Dream Team, featuring an MVP, Finals MVP, All-NBA player and future Hall of Famer.
This is a slightly different profile of the American star athlete than the last two U.S. men’s Olympic teams, even though they won gold medals in Rio and Tokyo.
Let’s take a look at who can join the team and why.
Who are the 41 Team USA finalists?
Bam Adebayo, Jarrett Allen, Paolo Banchero, Desmond Bane, Scottie Barnes, Devin Booker, Mikal Bridges, Jaylen Brown, Jaylen Brunson, Jimmy Butler, Alex Caruso, Stephen Curry, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, Anthony Edwards, Joel Embiid, De’Aaron Fox, Paul George, Aaron Gordon, Tyrese Haliburton, James Harden, Josh Hart, Tyler Herro, Jrue Holiday , Chet Holmgren, Brandon Ingram, Kyrie Irving, Jaren Jackson Jr., LeBron James, Cam Johnson, Walker Kessler, Kawhi Leonard, Damian Lillard, Donovan Mitchell, Chris Paul, Bobby. Portis, Austin Reaves, Duncan Robinson, Jayson Tatum, Derrick White, Trae Young.
Why do so many big-time NBA stars want to play?
Compared to the past two Summer Olympics, more big-name stars appear to be keen to play in Paris. why? A combination of reasons led to the river flowing into the Seine.
It’s Paris. Who wouldn’t want to spend time in Paris this summer aiming for gold?
Several star players, including James, Durant and Curry, see this as likely their last chance to play in the Olympics. James is 43, Curry is 40, and Durant is 39, meaning they will be nearing 40 by the time the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics roll around.
Curry has never competed in an Olympics before, and this will be his chance to play for Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr, head coach of the U.S. men’s team in Paris. Leonard will also be making his Olympic debut.
There is a realization that they can form another team to rival the Dream Team and the Redeem Team, and there is excitement among players at the prospect. Along with James, Curry, Durant, Leonard, Embiid and Harden, he has nine NBA MVPs, nine Finals MVPs and six Olympic gold medals, along with Adebayo, Booker, Holiday, Lillard, Tatum, Butler, Irving, George, Davis and Paul. He also won an Olympic gold medal.
The United States wants to reestablish its dominance on the world stage and show the world that, although it is gaining ground, it has not yet caught up with the best Americans. The United States has won the past four Olympic gold medals in men’s basketball, but finished fourth in the 2021 FIBA World Cup without a medal.
Who will be on the 12-man roster for U.S. Olympic men’s basketball?
With so many stars on the list, USA Basketball Men’s National Team Managing Director Grant Hill has a difficult job. Who are the 12 most qualified men to win the Olympic gold medal for the fifth consecutive year in men’s basketball?
Circumstances such as player injuries, family commitments and contract issues could narrow the list of finalists and potentially help Hill. However, it will still be difficult to exclude many of the finalists.
But teaming up with James, Durant, Curry, Embiid, Tatum, Leonard, Davis, Booker, Butler, and Lillard is a good start. However, that leaves only two spots on a team with many wings and guards.
Adebayo, Mitchell, Edwards, Brown, Irving, Haliburton, De’Aaron Fox, Banchero, or even Chris Paul, who helped lead the U.S. back to gold at the 2008 Beijing Games after a failure at the 2004 Beijing Games. Where will such players remain? Athens Olympics.
What else will it take for the U.S. to win the gold medal?
Hill and Kerr know they didn’t have the size they needed at last summer’s FIBA World Cup. Lithuania, led by 6-foot-11 center Jonas Valanciunas, outrebounded the Americans 43-27. Center Nikola Vucevic had 18 points and 16 rebounds in Montenegro’s loss to the United States. Germany’s Daniel Theis scored 21 points and grabbed 7 rebounds against the United States.
Even if Embiid and Davis play in Paris, especially if one or both don’t, a big man is needed no matter how impressive and deep the guard and wing positions are. Adebayo, Jaren Jackson Jr., Jarrett Allen and Walker Kessler should also be in the conversation.
The US will be huge at some point – Serbia’s Nikola Jokic. Rudy Gobert and Victor Wenbanyama of France; Theis, Moe Wagner, and Johannes Voigtmann from Germany. Valanciunas and Vucevic if Lithuania and/or Montenegro qualify. Do they have the physical strength to fight against it?
Grant Hill has an important and difficult decision to make.
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