Return Of The Slim Reaper - Lessons From Team USA's First Olympic Game

Team USA have opened their 2024 Olympic campaign with a comfortable victory over Nikola Jokic and Serbia. The Americans won the game 110-84, and while the game ended up a blowout, there are still places for the team to improve. There were also many things to be excited about from this game, that will certainly please Steve Kerr and company.

It can be attributed to the fact that the game was already over with about 12 minutes left, but the U.S. players were still far too sloppy with the ball throughout this game. They finished with 17 turnovers, nine more than coach Steve Kerr wants out of his team.

While LeBron James had yet another excellent game, the six turnovers were inexcusable and could prove costly in an elimination game. This needs to be tidied up across the board, as 17 turnovers to 24 assists is unacceptable for a team of this caliber.

Kevin Durant returned from his injury and reminded the world why he is considered one of the greatest scorers in basketball history. He put up 23 points in 16 minutes on 8-9 shooting. This included 5-5 from downtown, there's a reason he is the leading scorer in U.S. men's Olympic basketball history.

LeBron, as previously mentioned, also had a great game. He finished with 21 points, 9 assists, and 7 rebounds while shooting 69.2% from the field.

The U.S. had easily their best 3-point shooting game of the year, hitting a ridiculous 18 of 32 attempts from downtown. Nine came from the Phoenix Suns pairing of Durant and Devin Booker, while Steph Curry and Jrue Holiday hit three each. While this percentage of three-point shooting is unrealistic to expect continuously, it's nice to see players get into a groove from downtown as the competition moves further ahead.

The casualties of too much talent were evident in the Serbia game, as two NBA All-Stars did not get a second of playing time. Tyrese Haliburton was also a DNP in the Germany game, so his lack of game time wasn't much of a shock.

Steve Kerr said in the post-match interview that he 'felt like an idiot' after he was asked why Tatum didn't see the floor. Suggesting that he just forgot to put the Celtic in the game is hilarious, but also a bit concerning from a Head Coach. Regardless, it's likely that Tatum isn't being cut out of the rotation and will be back playing in the remaining pool games at least, even if his minutes are limited.

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