LeBron James Officially Makes Olympic History For Team USA

The USA basketball team has yet to play a second of Olympic action in Paris, but LeBron James has already managed to make history.

The Los Angeles Lakers star, along with tennis phenom Coco Gauff, were chosen by their fellow athletes as flagbearers for the American contingent. Even despite being up there in age, he has shown over the past year that he is still an elite playmaker—something that fans of the world stage were made aware of recently, as James bailed out Team USA in two of their exhibition meetings prior to the Olympics.

However, even though 39 is typically viewed as old in the sporting world, James' historic feat didn't look and feel his age. In fact, he is quite younger than Team USA's oldest flagbearer, Ralph Craig, who holds that honor after carrying the flag at 59 years of age back in 1948.

James officially became the first men's basketball player to hoist the flag for Team USA, which we finally got to see happen on Friday as he was at the bow of the United States' boat as they floated across the Seine in Paris.

In terms of how the selection process works, James was reportedly nominated as the flagbearer by Steph Curry.

"I think LeBron's entire career, on and off the court, speaks for itself as him being worthy of that honor," Curry told NBC.

James and the men's basketball team will open group play against Serbia this weekend in a rematch of one of their exhibition games that they played before heading to Paris. The 39-year-old James is going after his third gold medal.

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