KD, LeBron and Steph on board as USA go for fifth straight Olympic gold

NEW YORK (USA) - USA will be loaded with some of the best players in basketball history when they go after a fifth straight gold medal at the Men's Olympic Basketball Tournament Paris 2024 this summer.

Two-time FIBA Basketball World Cup winner and four-time NBA champion Stephen Curry is set to make his bow at the Olympics while LeBron James returns to the team for the first time since 2012, when he captured his second gold medal at the Summer Games. LeBron will play his fourth Olympic tournament. He also participated in the World Cup 2006 and the AmeriCup in 2007.

Curry and James are arguably the two most influential and decorated basketball superstars in the last two decades.

Curry, in the USA team that won World Cups in 2010 and 2014 (above), will make his Olympic bow

FIBA Basketball World Cup 2010 MVP and three-time Olympic gold medalist Kevin Durant,  the country's all-time leading scorer at the Games, along with Bam Adebayo, Devin Booker, Jayson Tatum, and Jrue Holiday, are five players that reached the top of the podium three years ago in Tokyo that will be with the USA in France.

Durant won the first of his three Olympic gold medals in 2012, when James last represented the USA

Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton, leading players in the USA team that finished fourth at last year's World Cup in Manila, are in the 12, as are 2023-24 NBA MVP Joel Embiid and two-time NBA champion and Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard who will be making their debuts.

Anthony Davis, a gold medal winner with James in 2012 and a leading player in the last USA team to lift the Naismith Trophy, at the 2014 World Cup in Spain, is also on the roster after a 10-year absence from the national team.

FIBA experience of USA Roster for Men's Olympic Basketball Tournament Paris 2024

Player	World Cup	Olympic Games	AmeriCup	Youth
LeBron James	2006	2004, 2008, 2012	2007
Kevin Durant	2010	2012, 2016, 2020
Stephen Curry	2010, 2014			U19 2007
Jayson Tatum	2019	2020		U16 2013, U17 2014, U19 2015
Anthony Davis	2014	2012
Tyrese Haliburton	2023			U19 2019
Anthony Edwards	2023
Bam Adebayo		2020
Jrue Holiday		2020
Devin Booker		2020
Joel Embiid
Kawhi Leonard

This USA roster stands as one of the most impressive ever assembled in the country's history. Last year the team lacked experience at the FIBA level. This issue has been decisively addressed, ensuring that if the USA falls short of gold, it won't be due to a lack of international basketball exposure.

Addressing another pain point from 2023, the team has bolstered its presence in the paint. With the size of Durant, James and Tatum on the perimeter and the commitments from Embiid, Davis, and Adebayo in the paint, the coach now has the necessary tools to confront the challenges of FIBA competition head-on.

Which countries are going to pose significant threats to the USA, who are No. 1 in the FIBA World Ranking Presented by Nike with (784.8 points)?

Of the teams that have already qualified for the Games, 2023 World Cup winners Germany are No. 3 (759.0) in the ranking while Serbia (757.9) are fourth and Australia (756.3) are fifth. All three will have designs on winning gold, as will No. 7 Canada (746.2), who beat the USA in the Third-Place Game at the World Cup and are led NBA MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous Alexander.

Canada will be formidable opponents for any team at the Olympics, including USA

France, who will have home-court advantage and pushed the USA to the very end in a thrilling battle for gold at the Tokyo Olympics, are No. 9.

The Americans will be wary of the Germans and Serbians, who squared off in last year's World Cup Final.

Germany will have the USA's attention after defeating them in the Semi-Finals at the World Cup 

In the history of the Olympic basketball tournament, which dates back to the 1936 Berlin Games, USA have won 16 gold medals. On just four occasions have the USA not won the Olympic title, the last in 2004 when Argentina beat them in the Semi-Finals.

Steve Kerr, who held the reins of the USA at last year's World Cup, will coach the team in France. They will play in Group C with Serbia, South Sudan and the country that wins the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Lithuania, Italy, hosts Puerto Rico, Mexico, Côte d'Ivoire and Bahrain are playing in that event.

Training camp for the USA will begin on July 6 in Las Vegas. Following a July 10 warmup game against Canada, the Americans will embark on an international training window that gets underway when they host Australia and Serbia on July 15 and 17, respectively, at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

The USA Basketball Showcase then moves to Europe, with London's O2 Arena staging USA games against South Sudan on July 20 and Germany on July 22. Also at the O2 Arena on July 23 will be a battle between the USA women and Germany.

The USA Basketball Showcase features a series of games that help the USA Basketball National Teams prepare for major competitions, including the Olympic Summer Games and FIBA World Cup.

FIBA