NBA Legend Charles Barkley Sends Hilarious Warning To Team USA Ahead Of Quarterfinal Matchup With Brazil

Team USA's basketball squad has been exceptionally dominant at the 2024 Paris Olympics, achieving a flawless 3-0 record in the group stage. The team has convincingly defeated Serbia, South Sudan, and Puerto Rico, advancing to the quarterfinals to compete against Brazil.

Steve Kerr's team is widely regarded as the frontrunner for the gold medal this summer, and it seems unlikely that any team could hinder their quest for the gold medal. However, should Team USA not secure the victory, NBA icon Charles Barkley humorously suggests they should be barred from re-entering the country.

Although Barkley's comments may not be entirely serious, he emphasizes that with such a talented roster, there's no justification for not winning gold.

“Listen if they lose we can't let them back in the country, we can't, I told them they can't come back. I mean because with the team we got I mean it's no excuse for us to lose the gold medal. All they got to do is go out there and play hard, play unselfish because that's really the key," Barkley said vis Podcast P presented by Wave Sports + Entertainment.

"Like we talked about it a little bit earlier, Joel, heck of a player, we're not gonna walk the ball up and down the court to give it to you. LeBron, we're not gonna walk the ball up and down the court same thing. Like whoever is in the game like hey let me just play basketball. It was so easy on the first Dream Team, like yo we got two starting lineups, y'all play the first 10 we play the second 10, let's just play basketball. We're not really going to run no plays because if we play great defense and push it that's all we got to do.”

Interestingly, Barkley believes that the U.S. needs to depend on every player, not just LeBron James or Joel Embiid, to contribute. The comparison with the 1992 Dream Team is quite striking, noting that they utilized two different starting lineups for each half.

Kerr hasn't adopted this strategy at the Olympics and is still determining the best rotations against various opponents.

Serbia was anticipated to be the Americans' toughest challenge at these Olympics, yet they dominated Nikola Jokic and his team, winning 110-84. Team USA's top scorers, Bam Adebayo, Kevin Durant, and Anthony Edwards, have all been substitutes. Since the exhibition games leading up to the Olympics, the U.S. have maintained a perfect 8-0 record.

The favorites now have to secure three victories in just five days to clinch the gold. Currently, Canada seems to be their most formidable opponent, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and several other NBA talents at the helm.

However, as Ker has recently emphasized, the focus is on defense , according to ESPN.

“We are just completely focused on our defense … and then the beauty of our team and the talent, the depth of our talent is that from one game to the next, we've got lots of guys who have the ability to get rolling.”

Team USA will face Brazil on Tuesday with tip-off taking place at 3:30 p.m. ET.

Related: Draymond Green Criticizes Steve Kerr for Limiting Jayson Tatum's Role on Team USA in Paris Olympics