LeBron James and Anthony Davis led the way for Team USA in its blowout win over Serbia before the 2024 Paris Olympics, as the Lakers duo claimed revenge on Nikola Jokic amid ‘ego’ claims potentially derailing the Star and Stripes’ gold medal quest.
Facing the ‘Joker’ for the first time since the Lakers were swept in the playoffs in April (4-1), James scored a mere 5 points in the US’ 105-74 victory in Abu Dhabi to improve the Americans pre-Olympics tour to 3-0.
Davis, 31, only had seven points but put on a memorable defensive performance with six blocks and rebounds in 18 minutes, including a pin off the glass at the 8-minute mark in the fourth quarter that preceded a standing ovation.
Warriors guard Steph Curry was the US’ highest scorer of the matchup with 18 points on 6 of 9 shooting overall, including 4 of 6 shots taken from behind the arc.
Ahead of Wednesday’s game, a Team USA insider exclusively told DailyMail.com that ‘the ego that lies within the team, everyone is out for their own and not for the team as a whole.’
”They haven’t looked good and have been exposed, and many international teams that have played together longer are more cohesive and have a decent chance of beating the USA team,’ the source added despite the abundance of NBA star-studded talent on the roster.
Meanwhile, Jokic, who’s coming off his third MVP season on the Nuggets, had 8 points on 3 of 10 shooting overall, including 0 of 2 3-point attempts, as he struggled against the US.
Bam Adebayo scored at will — inside and out — and helped Davis make life difficult for the Jokic, as the Heat center ended the contest with 17 points. Team USA made 16 of 36 shots from 3-point range.
One standout play from the contest was Curry corralling a loose ball with a lightning release from the left wing, splashing his fifth 3-pointer of the game to inflate the US advantage to 90-63. James then emphatically stamped a right-handed slam off a lob from Adebayo.
The next possession was a highlight reel of dribbling and passing that ended with another Curry 3, followed by James getting downhill and powering for a lefty finish and 31-point lead.
Jokic touched the ball on nearly every possession and passionately implored teammates to dig in defensively to no avail. Jokic spent the fourth quarter seated with Serbia and the US to meet again in the first Pool C game for both countries in the Olympics on July 28.
Shooting and depth stood out as the US gathered around Jokic on the defensive end and spread the ball around with extra passes. Adebayo drained a 3 from the top of the key to push the lead to 81-53 late in the third quarter.
Team USA ended the first half with a finishing kick sparked by high-energy defense and led 59-45 thanks to the bench outscoring the starters, 30-29.
The Americans plays two more games before the Olympics begin with pool play this month, with South Sudan up next Saturday in London.
