Olympic Basketball 2024: Which Teams Can Challenge Team USA?
With the FIBA Olympic qualifying tournaments concluding, the Olympic basketball stage is finally set. The United States of America Basketball National Mens Team (USABNMT) looks to be the favorite to win the Olympic tournament, with a roster exploding with NBA talent. However, which teams/countries pose the biggest threat to Team USA?
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Team USA Roster
The world questioned the country’s basketball dominance after Team USA failed to earn a medal at the 2023 FIBA World Cup despite having the most NBA players. USA track athlete Noah Lyles famously took a shot at NBA players, questioning why they call the season winners world champions.
This sparked many NBA players to commit to the 2024 Paris Olympics to show the world the USA is still dominant in the global basketball scene.
Featuring NBA MVP’s, All-Stars, and future hall of famers, the USABNMT looks like the team to beat. Leading the charge are olympic veterans and basketball legends LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Steph Curry will be making his first olympics appearance, alongside young talents like Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton. The USA roster is loaded with high-level talent from top to bottom, and it will be a tall task for any team that plays against them.
Guards:
Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors)
Devin Booker (Phoenix Suns)
Anthony Edwards (Minnesota Timberwolves)
Jrue Holiday (Boston Celtics)
Tyrese Haliburton (Indiana Pacers).
Forwards:
LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers)
Kevin Durant (Phoenix Suns)
Kawhi Leonard (LA Clippers)
Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics)
Centers:
Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers)
Anthony Davis (Los Angeles Lakers)
Bam Adebayo (Miami Heat)
Who Poses the Biggest Threat to Team USA?
Greece
After beating Croatia 80-69 in the final game of its FIBA Olympic Qualifying tournament, the Greece national team will be heading to the Olympics for the first time since 2008. In his first Olympics appearance, former NBA MVP and champion Giannis Antetokounmpo will look to lead the Greece to glory. Antetokounmpo scored 23 points against Croatia, while Georgios Papagiannis had 19 and Nick Calathes contributed 14.
While Greece’s roster isn’t filled with as much NBA talent as the USABNMT, it is a solid team of overseas professionals led by one of the best players in the world. Antetokounmpo has the ability to completely take over and dominate any game, and he could give Team USA major problems if matched up in the knockout stages.
One thing for sure is that Antetokounmpo will give every game his all. He was seen emotional after Greece qualified for the Olympics.
France
With multiple NBA players on its roster, France is a scary squad for any team to face. The Blues boast players like Rudy Gobert, Victor Wembanyama, Nicolas Batum, Evan Fournier and overseas veteran Nando de Colo.
The most dangerous aspect of France is the towering front-court of Gobert and Wembanyama. With Gobert standing at 7-1 and Wembanyama at 7-4, they will give teams nightmares in the paint, especially since FIBA basketball doesn’t have a defensive three-second violation. Gobert and Wembanyama also provide France with a constant vertical lob threat and elite offensive and defensive rebounding. Pairing them with experienced players like de Colo and Batum, the Blues have a real chance to challenge Team USA and win it all.
Gobert and Wembanyama’s chemistry seems on point, even running pick and rolls with each other.
Serbia
When you have arguably the best player in the world on your team, anything is possible. Luckily for Serbia, Nikola Jokic is leading their squad. Coming off of an MVP season, Jokic is ready to bring the gold home for Serbia. The 6-11 center has little to no weaknesses on the offensive end, and can control games with his elite passing.
Alongside Jokic are NBA players Bogdan Bogdanovic and Nikola Jovic. While there are not a significant amount of NBA players on the Serbian team, Jokic makes everyone around him better, helping create a formidable squad against talented teams like the USA.
Canada
Even after losing Andrew Wiggins and Zach Edey, Canada’s roster looks as dangerous as ever. Team Canada also features many NBA players, including MVP finalist Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jamal Murray, Dillon Brooks, Luguentz Dort, RJ Barrett, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker.
The elite backcourt of Gilgeous-Alexander and Murray will be hard for any team to contain. While both are ball-dominant guards, they are too talented not to make the paring work. With Gilgeous-Alexander’s ability to attack the basket and Murray’s shooting, this one-two punch could give Team USA problems.
Canada’s defense also stands out as a major strength. It features high-level defenders like Brooks, Dort, and Alexander-Walker. These players have experience guarding players on the USABNMT, giving them an advantage.
