Two days after a close call against South Sudan, Team USA returned to O2 Arena in London and the Americans were tested again by Germany. Thanks largely to LeBron James‘ late-game heroics, they came away with another victory. James scored the United States’ final 11 points in the 92-88 win over the Germans on Monday. It was their final exhibition game before the 2024 Olympics.
James, whom the U.S. Olympic Committee named flag bearer on Monday, led Team USA with 20 points on 8-for-11 shooting, plus six rebounds and four assists in 20 minutes. In the span of less than four minutes near the end of the fourth quarter, James grabbed three defensive rebounds, came up with a steal and made two layups, a dunk, a 3-pointer and two free throws.
Joel Embiid added 15 points on 5-for-8 shooting, eight rebounds, five assists, a steal and a block in 21 minutes for Team USA. Stephen Curry didn’t shoot particularly well (5 for 13 from 3, 1 for 7 from 3-point range), but, as usual, his off-ball movement opened things up offensively — he was plus-10 in 25 minutes.
Germany went on a 16-4 run late in the third quarter and, before James’ takeover, had a one-point lead with less than five minutes left in the fourth. Franz Wagner finished with a team-high 18 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals. Dennis Schroder shot poorly (3 for 15, including 3 for 11 from deep), but got into the paint consistently and recorded 10 assists. Moe Wagner had 12 points and seven rebounds in 14 minutes off the bench.
Tyrese Haliburton got a DNP-CD for Team USA, as coach Steve Kerr elected to have Derrick White run the second unit. Kevin Durant once again sat out with a strained calf. He did not play in any of Team USA’s tune-up games.
The United States’ first game of group play at the Olympics will take place on Sunday against Serbia at 11:15 a.m. ET.
It all starts with defense
After Saturday’s nailbiter, Kerr told reporters that Team USA’s defense and effort weren’t up to par “for the whole first half.” In these respects, they were not perfect against Germany, either, but they were definitely sharper. The vast majority of their highlight plays were of the defense-to-offense variety, and, as you’re about to see, there were quite a few highlight plays.
Here’s James throwing down a reverse dunk off a hit-ahead pass from Embiid:
Here’s Jrue Holiday connecting with James on an alley-oop:
Here’s a fancy finish from Jayson Tatum off a block by Bam Adebayo:
Here’s a Curry 3 after a block by James:
Here’s an Anthony Edwards dunk off a block by Embiid:
All of that happened in the first half, and I didn’t even include the dunk that Edwards threw down after getting a steal at the point of attack. If it wasn’t abundantly clear already, it should now be obvious to everyone involved with Team USA that they need to dominate in defense and in transition. They still have to work on their decision-making in the halfcourt, but, ideally, they won’t have to rely on being great in the halfcourt.
The good news is that Kerr seems to be thinking the same way. He didn’t decide to start the second half with the second unit on the floor this time, but going with White over Haliburton is a clear signal that defensive — and ball pressure in particular — is the priority.
The bad news, from Team USA’s perspective at least, is that, even with an abundance of length, athleticism and rim protection, they can’t just expect to shut everybody down. Germany put up 30 points in the third quarter, and the team’s ability to space the floor 5-out gave the United States trouble. In Lille and Paris, they can expect to face a number of teams that play similarly, emphasizing ball movement and 3-point shooting.
A math problem
Speaking of 3-point shooting: Team USA collectively shot 6 for 17 from deep, while Germany shot 13 for 43. That is a wild disparity and an alarming number of attempts for the Americans. Curry himself shot 17 or more 3s in six different games last season with the Golden State Warriors. (NBA games are eight minutes longer, but they also feature a 3-point line that is about a foot and a half further away from the basket.)
Much of this is a credit to Germany’s game plan. They clearly wanted to funnel the United States’ perimeter players into long 2s and floaters, and, even though some of those looks were pretty clean, this strategy worked.
I am curious to see how many other teams play drop coverage against Team USA’s wings at the Olympics. For players like Edwards, Tatum and Devin Booker in particular, playing on this team is a real change in terms of touches and playmaking responsibility. If they might already be a bit unsure with their shoot-pass decisions, ceding them space in the midrange could make them even more prone to indecision.
I’m not sure how much Kerr’s coaching staff will harp on getting more 3s up in the coming days. Team USA surely wants to generate more catch-and-shoot opportunities than they have been, though. Perhaps it’ll happen naturally, as they get more comfortable with the offense. If it doesn’t, this will be an area of concern.
Nothing easy
If there is one bigger-picture takeaway from these exhibition games, it’s that talent alone — even an astonishing amount of talent — is not necessarily enough. USA Basketball has assembled its most star-studded roster since the original Dream Team, but that doesn’t guarantee gold. Yes, Team USA will be massive favorites in France, and no, I wouldn’t pick against them. But it’s not the least bit difficult to imagine them losing. We just saw them narrowly escape defeat twice.
Before Monday, the last time the United States faced Germany was last September in the semifinals of the FIBA World Cup. Germany won, and then it won gold, so it’s not like Team USA had any reason to underestimate them this time. And even though this version of Team USA was coming off that scare against South Sudan, they weren’t able to make some sort of big statement with a blowout win.
Team USA should expect tense moments at the Olympics, and in that sense they should be pleased to have been in a couple of dicey situations (albeit without the stakes) in London. For USA Basketball, this state of affairs could be a bit worrying. For those of us who just want the games to be competitive, though, it’s wonderful.
