Paris hosted the 2024 Summer Olympics, which included the United States’ men’s basketball team that would bring home the gold. The team, coached by Steve Kerr, included some of basketball’s all-time greats, such as Lebron James and Stephen Curry. The roster included four former NBA MVPs and 11 former NBA All-Stars.
From July 10 to July 22, Team USA played in five exhibition games before the Olympics. Despite winning all five games, they looked vulnerable at times.
Less than a week after their last exhibition game, Team USA faced former NBA MVP Nikola Jokic in their first Olympic game in the group stage. Despite Serbia keeping the game close when Jokic was on the floor, the United States outscored Serbia 29-3 when Jokic was on the bench. The United States finished the preliminary rounds coasting past South Sudan and Puerto Rico, winning both games by an average of 19 points.
Team USA advanced as the first seed in their group and faced off against Brazil. The United States beat Brazil 122-87, and Kevin Durant became the team’s all-time leading scorer after scoring 11 points.
Then, in a semifinal rematch against Serbia, Team USA would have their first real test in the Olympics. Despite Curry having five 3-pointers in the first quarter, Serbia would end the quarter leading 32-23. Later in the second quarter, Serbia would be up by as much as 17 before halftime, when the United States could cut the lead down to 11. Team USA continued to struggle until the fourth quarter with seven minutes left. Team USA would outscore Serbia 32-15 in the fourth quarter, where Serbia struggled. Curry finished with 36 crucial points, and the United States won 95-91.
By beating Serbia, Team USA earned their place in the finals against the French team led by Victor Wembanyama. After obtaining a 29-27 lead, Team USA was able to fend off comeback efforts from France and never trailed for the rest of the game. Curry had a vintage game in which he scored 24 points and drained an insane off-platform deep 3-pointer that put the United States up 96-87 with 35 seconds left.
Team USA lived up to the high expectations and solidified its place in basketball history by taking home the gold. James was named the MVP of men’s basketball at the Olympics after he averaged 14.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game. Curry led the team in scoring, averaging 14.8 points per game despite struggling prior to the semifinals.
