Two teams stand in the way of the U.S.'s quest to win the gold medal in the Paris Olympics. The first obstacle in the semifinal round is Serbia, who entered the competition as one of the favorites to upend Team USA 's reign in the quadrennial event, primarily because of Nikola Jokic.
Serbian national squad head coach Svetislav Pesic knows he and his players have a steep hill to climb, seeing how stacked their opponent's roster is. The longtime coach even admitted that this iteration of Team USA is the best ever, reiterating his belief that the "Avengers" is even better than the Dream Team .
"We are playing against an exceptional team," Pesic told Meridiansport, as translated by Eurohoops . "I think it is the best team in national team's basketball history."
The Red, White, and Blue debate
The 74-year-old Serb's statement might have a lot of folks up in arms again, as there has been heavy pushback on the notion that this year's U.S. group, led by LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Stephen Curry, could beat arguably the most iconic team of all time.
People who have made an argument for the Dream Team have pointed out that the 1992 squad was never really threatened by its opponents on the international stage. Meanwhile, James and company almost lost to South Sudan in the USA Basketball Showcase before the Olympics.
On the other side of the debate, there are folks who emphasize that there are nearly 10 times more active NBA players outside of Team USA this year than in Barcelona '92.
Moreover, Team USA's 1992 iteration had to deal with several of its players being injured (John Stockton and Clyde Drexler), advanced in age (Larry Bird), or coming off a year of not playing organized basketball (Magic Johnson).
Of course, there is no way to definitively know who would come out on top of a hypothetical matchup between the squads. Funnily enough, Pesic can put the debate to rest if he leads Serbia to victory over the gold-medal favorite.
Related: "Our toughest games will be the next two" – Steve Kerr on the challenge of facing a Serbian team that has momentum on its side
The Serbs trying to play the spoiler
The upset scenario might be unlikely, though, especially since Team USA already seems to know how to bring down "The Eagles" this year.
In their exhibition matchup during the USAB Showcase, the Stars and Stripes never let up, running to a 105-79 win. Then, they faced off again in their opening game in the Olympics, with James and Durant taking turns making mincemeat of the Europeans in the first half on the way to a 110-84 blowout victory.
Still, the U.S. cannot afford to relax, as Serbia continues to be a huge threat, especially with Jokic playing well as of late and because his teammates can catch fire anytime from the perimeter.
It should also help the Serbs' confidence that Pesic has already experienced defeating Team USA in the 2002 FIBA World Championships, steering Yugoslavia to a win in the quarterfinals before putting the icing on the cake with a gold-medal finish. Today, he has the opportunity to etch his name in history once more if he helps Serbia beat what he believes is the best U.S. team of all time.
Related: "This is an entirely different competition" - Steve Kerr responds to Serbia head coach's claim that 2024 Team USA is better than Dream Team
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