If this proves to be a dress rehearsal for the Olympics opener in 11 days, Steve Kerr and Team USA look golden.
Facing its opening game opponent from the Paris Olympics — a dangerous Serbian team with three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic — the USA’s defense clamped down in the second half and shut down the Serbs, allowing the Americans to use their superior athleticism and get out and run. Which meant it was showtime for the fans in Abu Dhabi.
Anthony Edwards extends the USA lead. 🔥😳
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 17, 2024
🎥 @usabasketball | #USABMNTpic.twitter.com/6amMaxLxHF
This game was close for the first 15 minutes but the USA went on a 16-2 run late in the second quarter, another 15-0 early in the third and it turned into a 105-79 blowout American win.
That’s three straight exhibition wins for this “Avengers” American squad, all against teams with legitimate medal aspirations. The USA has dominated these matchups (except for late against Australia) but has yet to fully click together as a team — although the second half was close to that.
This game highlighted more things going right for coach Steve Kerr and Team USA.
• The pairing of Anthony Davis and Bam Adebayo on the second unit has proved unstoppable and America’s best weapon.
In the second half, Adebayo was making Heat coach Erik Spoelstra smile on the bench by draining three 3-pointers on his way to 17 points — walking off the court LeBron called Bam the “newest Splash Brother.” Meanwhile Davis absolutely owned the paint defensively and finished the game with six blocks. This duo off the bench could be the USA’s golden ticket, nobody can match up with them.
Protect the paint.
— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) July 17, 2024
🇺🇸 #USABMNT x 📺 FS1 pic.twitter.com/kakbU9AUAa
• Things also look better when Stephen Curry is doing Stephen Curry things — he led the USA with 24 points and was 6-of-9 from 3. The crowd in Abu Dhabi ate it up.
Steph Curry FOR THREE while being fouled! 🔥🤯
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 17, 2024
🎥 @usabasketball | #USABMNTpic.twitter.com/zv2WDaLTAC
• Anthony Edwards finished with 16 points and continues to be the athletic change-of-pace on a veteran team that is much needed.
• After a bit of a sloppy start, the USA limited the turnovers that had been a problem the first two games. More importantly, they are getting better at recognizing the defenses against them and how to exploit it. European teams in FIBA tend to have their bigs hedge out to slow the ball handler on pick-and-rolls, but the USA has too much talent to play that way and will exploit that strategy as long as they move the ball. They did in the second half on plays like this, a thunderous LeBron James alley-oop.
LEBRON ALLEY-OOP WITH AUTHORITY. 💥😤
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 17, 2024
🎥 @usabasketball | #USABMNTpic.twitter.com/Cd2VudDshu
• Joel Embiid looked comfortable in the second half, far more than he had through the first two-and-a-half games this exhibition. His play remains one of the big keys to the USA winning, in part because playing him as the lone big with one unit allows Kerr to keep Davis and Adebayo together on the other.
• Nicola Jokic led Serbia with 16 points and 11 rebounds. He played well but didn’t have nearly enough around him through most of this game. When things are perfect for Serbia (or other top international teams) they can hang with the USA, but the depth of the American squad wears other countries down because they can’t keep up that level of play for 40 minutes.
• Kerr went with his third starting lineup through three games. The constants have been LeBron, Curry and Embiid but this time Celtics Jayson Tatum and Jrue Holiday joined him. That could be the starting five Kerr ultimately leans into, although with Kevin Durant replacing Tatum.
• Durant has yet to practice or play with Team USA due to calf soreness but both he and Kerr have said he is close to a return.
• Serbia promised to be the USA’s biggest exhibition test, the team that won the silver medal at the FIBA World Cup last summer then added three-time NBA MVP Jokic. That the USA pulled away in an exhibition means nothing once the games shift to France and the Olympics open – both teams were careful not to show all their cards in this preview game — but things could not look much better heading to Paris.
