After the US lost to Germany and Canada in the FIBA Basketball World Cup on September 11, 2023, fans began to question the validity and strength of US basketball. Olympic sprinter Noah Lyles quickly became a polarizing figure in the sports community with his remarks about the NBA: “I have to watch the NBA Finals, and they have world champion on their head. World champion of what?” His comment sparked international controversy and anger, particularly among NBA stars, and resulted in the desire of the US to assemble their best basketball players for the upcoming 2024 Olympics in Paris. 

Historically, the US has assembled legendary teams for the Olympics. Two of the most iconic teams in sports were the Dream Team and the Redeem Team. The 1992 Dream team was composed of all-time talents like Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Charles Barkley, etc. The team marked the first time active NBA players would participate in the Olympics and drew heavy expectations. The 2008 Redeem Team came after the US’s disappointing bronze medal in the previous Olympics. It was composed of more all-time greats like LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony, and Dwayne Wade. Both teams won gold medals, going on historic runs and asserting the US as the most dominant country for basketball. 

Now, the 2024 US Olympic team has a similar feat to accomplish in Paris. Here are the top players who have either confirmed or shown interest in joining the team to represent the US: LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Joel Embiid, Kevin Durant, and even more talents like Jayson Tatum, Damian Lillard, Devin Booker, and Anthony Davis. The 2024 Avengers Team is stacked with MVPs, all-stars, and Hall of Famers. The questions now surrounding this team are whether they can reclaim the throne for the US and NBA after a humiliating loss in the FIBA World Cup and whether they can live up to the expectations and standards set by some of the greatest basketball Olympic teams assembled.

Sources:

United States men’s national basketball team (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_men%27s_national_basketball_team (Accessed: 12 November 2023). 

1992 United States men’s olympic basketball team (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1992_United_States_men%27s_Olympic_basketball_team (Accessed: 12 November 2023). 

United States men’s national basketball team (2023a) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_men%27s_national_basketball_team (Accessed: 12 November 2023). 

Kalbrosky, B. (2023) Projecting the roster for a lebron james, Joel Embiid-led Team USA at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, USA Today. Available at: https://ftw.usatoday.com/lists/2024-usa-basketball-team-predictions-lebron-steph-kd (Accessed: 12 November 2023). 

FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 (no date) FIBA.basketball. Available at: https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023 (Accessed: 12 November 2023).