LeBron James' Team USA Olympic Report Baffles NBA Fans

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James will be participating in his fourth Olympic games in Paris, France, this summer. The Athletic's Joe Vardon reveals that it's "unlikely" James will come off the bench and is expected to start for Team USA in the Summer Olympics.

Vardon's report recently stirred online confusion since many fans never thought the four-time NBA Champion was coming off the bench.

“James coming off the bench, probably won’t happen. I spoke with two USA Basketball sources and both cast serious doubt on the idea…James, the sources said, will likely play point forward for the Americans as a starter, moving Curry off the ball," said Vardon via The Athletic .

The 39-year-old basketball legend will look to lead Team USA's veteran squad to its 17th gold medal in Olympic history. James has two gold medals and one bronze, beginning international play in 2005.

During the 2023-24 season with the Lakers, James averaged 25.7 points and 7.3 rebounds per game in his 21st year in the league. Given James' skill set and experience, NBA fans were baffled by the report.

"Obviously Lebron isn’t coming off the bench. Did anyone think this was even going to be a possibility?" said one fan.

Many believe this will be James' final Olympic run since the 6-foot-9 forward is nearing the end of his basketball career. Some of the major accomplishments James has notched in his career have been securing four NBA MVPs while being a 20x All-Star and 20x All-NBA member.

"Bron and Steph were always gonna start. Idk why this was ever a discussion." said another fan," said another fan.

James and Team USA will play in their first exhibition game on July 10th against Team Canada in Las Vegas. They'll then travel to Abu Dhabi to face off against Australia and Serbia, continuing their exhibition runs before landing in France in late July.

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