LeBron James and Kevin Durant power Team USA past Serbia, 110-84, in opening Olympic contest
It was the first time James had played in the quadrennial tournament since winning his second consecutive gold medal at the London Games and it was clear the 39-year-old all-time leading NBA scorer was bringing as much energy as he can to Paris. The US next plays South Sudan on Wednesday, who ran the Americans close in an exhibition game in London before the Games that was decided by just a point.
James’ 21 points, eight rebounds and nine assists helped provide the spark for Team USA throughout the contest. The ever-present four-time NBA champion seemed to always be on the verge of breaking out of the US backcourt on the fast break, exemplified by a tough, contested layup in the third quarter, in which the Los Angeles Lakers star powered through a Serb defender for a bucket.
The first half though was all about Kevin Durant, who scored 21 points on 8-for-8 shooting. It’s the Phoenix Suns forward’s fourth time at the Olympics and his performance proved just how much the two-time NBA champion loves this particular competition.
Durant is recovering from a calf injury and his playing time was limited during the game, otherwise he might have ended the contest with an even more ridiculous stat line. He finished with 23 points.
On a team laden with stars, two first-time Olympians also stood out against Serbia.
Anthony Edwards made his Olympics debut and already has his first highlight reel play. With a deft spin-and-pump-fake move along the baseline on Team USA’s final possession of the third quarter, the Minnesota Timberwolves guard sent a Serb defender flying past him toward the sideline as he went to the basket. Edwards was left with an uncontested shot that he easily floated in for a bucket, putting the US up by 19 heading into the final frame.
The move and bucket from Edwards set off celebrations among his teammates, including Steph Curry breaking into dance. Edwards finished with 11 points and five rebounds.
It appeared to be the turning point that put Team USA on its way to a blowout win after Serbia hung around for much of the first three quarters of the game.
Curry’s three-point shooting proved to be a major asset in the early going as Serbia jumped out to a hot start. A couple of key buckets in the early part of the first quarter helped stymie the Europeans’ run and kept the US from having too big of a hole to dig itself out of.
The Golden State Warriors star was largely quiet for the rest of the game, missing a couple of shots that he might like to have back as he gets used to the shorter international three-point line. He finished the game with an exclamation point three-pointer for 11 points.
Jrue Holiday and Devin Booker also turned in solid performances with 15 and 12 points respectively.
Serbia figures to be a force in this tournament though thanks to its talismanic forward Nikola Jokić. The Serbians refused to go away in the game, even as Team USA picked up steam in the second half with the three-time NBA MVP Jokić finished with 20 points, eight assists and five rebounds.
Serbia’s next game is on Wednesday against Puerto Rico.
James' high energy level during the game was evident, showcasing his passion for both NBA and sports in general. Following their victory against Serbia, Team USA will face South Sudan in their next sporting event on Wednesday.
