One of the remaining questions about the US men's basketball team as they continue their preparations for the Paris Olympics is which five will start for the Americans during the tournament.
So far, Team USA has played three exhibition games, and head coach Steve Kerr has fielded a different starting lineup in each game. However, in those three games, there have been three constants in the starting five: LeBron James , Steph Curry , and Joel Embiid.
Kerr was asked about this after the Americans' 105-79 domination of Serbia. The Golden State Warriors head coach said he's fond of having the three open the game for them.
"Yeah, I like those three guys in the starting lineup," said Kerr. "We've been looking at other guys around them and we obviously do have great options, but I like those three guys together."
Favorable trio
Against Jokic's team, Kerr went with his favorite trio, plus Jrue Holiday and Jayson Tatum, to begin the game for Team USA . It marked Holiday's second start in three games, as Jrue also opened against Canada before Anthony Edwards replaced him against Australia. Meanwhile, JT has started the last two games after Devin Booker got the call against Canada.
Despite playing without Bogdan Bogdanovic and Nikola Milutinov, Serbia kept it close early as the first quarter ended in a 28-28 tie. Jokic and company stood toe-to-toe with the Americans until a 19-5 run by Team USA's second unit gave them a double-digit lead at the half. They blew the game wide open with an 11-0 run in the third quarter.
Steph Curry waxed hot with 24 points, including 18 in the first half. Bam Adebayo had a big game with 17 points and 8 rebounds, while Anthony Edwards added 16 points and 3 steals. Anthony Davis had another huge defensive effort with 6 blocks aside from seven points and six rebounds.
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Embiid says his knee is fine
Meanwhile, JoJo did an excellent job bodying Jokic at the start of the game, and they matched up every time. The Joker scored 16 points but was just 6-19 from the field. Still Joel himself continued to struggle on offense, going just 2-8, although he grabbed 8 rebounds.
"My knee is doing great right now," said Embiid after the game. "I can tell at the start, but as the game goes on, I'm starting to find my groove. I just gotta keep building up. But I'm sure by the time we get to Paris it'll be a different story."
Kerr has received backlash for insisting on starting Embiid. Critics say AD deserves the nod because not only has he been the best big man in their exhibition games, but he has also been the team's most impactful player because of his defense and shot-blocking. However, Kerr's statement appears to indicate that Embiid will get that role when they get to Paris.
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