The USA Basketball Men’s National Team opened gameplay in the 2024 Paris Olympics with a dominant 110-84 win against Serbia, silencing many who raised concerns following a stretch of multiple close wins during exhibition play.
Team USA was led in the team’s first Olympic game by forwards Lebron James and Kevin Durant, who combined for 44 points, 9 assists, and 7 rebounds.
Despite playing eight minutes less than an NBA game due to FIBA rules used in the Olympics, Team USA still put on a scoring show after the team made 18 three-point jump shots and shot an incredible 62.32% from the field.
Serbia opened the game by playing aggressively on both ends of the court and managed to keep the game close through the first half, trailing 58-49 as the teams went to intermission.
However, Team USA demonstrated its depth and shot-making in the second half. The lead did nothing but grow, and the Americans took a firm hold of the game going into the final quarter.
U.S. Head Coach Steve Kerr, who coached Durant for four years in Golden State, said after the game that adding the forward into the lineup was seamless due to his style of play.
“Maybe more than any player I’ve been around, when he comes back from a long absence, you don’t notice it,” he said, per USAB.com.
“He’s so skilled. He looked like he was in midseason form after not playing in a real basketball game for a couple of months. Pretty incredible.”
Durant, named to the All-NBA Second Team this past season, is one of the easiest players in the sport to plug into any lineup due to his off-ball shot-making and size, which allows him to shoot over almost any player an opposing team could send out.
Team USA inserted Durant into the lineup for the first time following a span of five exhibition games in which the team went undefeated yet showed flaws during close wins. The closest of these matchups involved a game-winning layup by James to defeat South Sudan 101-100.
Thes exhibition matches were capped off with yet another close matchup against Germany in which the U.S. won 92-88, needing even more heroics down the stretch from James to secure the win.
Despite the narrow wins, Team USA players and coaches never seemed worried about their chances once Olympic play began.
Guard Stephen Curry said after the win against Germany that close wins will benefit the team since they have now undergone “every experience” as a group.
“Now it’s obviously a matter of showing up when the lights are bright next week. I think we’re ready. I think we’re prepared. Now we have to perform,” he added, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
Performing is exactly what Team USA did in its first game of the Olympics. It will now look to carry this momentum over the next two weeks and secure another gold medal for the country.
Team USA is set to continue in the group stage of the games with a game against South Sudan on Wednesday, followed by a game against Puerto Rico on August 3.
Winning the group stage will advance the team to the knockout phase of the Olympics, where Team USA will battle against the winners from the other groups.