Gil thinks LeBron’s critics want Team USA to fail so they can put the blame on him.
Team USA averted disaster by pulling off a hard-earned 95-91 win over Serbia in the 2024 Olympics. Stephen Curry had an all-time great performance on the international stage, scoring 36 points, including nine three-pointers, to save Team USA from humiliation. But what if Curry wasn’t the hero and the U.S. lost?
According to Rashad McCants, LeBron James would’ve been the No.1 guy to take the blame for the loss. After all, he was among the first to publicly announce his intention to play at the Paris Olympics and boasted about recruiting his fellow stars.
However, “Gil’s Arena” host Gilbert Arenas disagreed with McCants. According to the retired NBA guard, Rashad is among the many LeBron haters rooting against Team USA because they want to discredit James’ legacy.
“The reason that these guys are rooting for South Sudan, Serbia, everybody against Team USA is so LeBron James, if he fails, they get to throw this: ‘This is why you’re not the GOAT, even though their GOAT wasn’t sh** at this age.’ Any GOAT that they even decided to pick was not a basketball player at this age. So they’re gonna judge him off something that their star wasn’t even a part of. And if he wins, ‘Ah, actually, it don’t matter. It’s a team thing.’ If USA loses, all the reporters are going to blame LeBron James like it was his fault,” Gilbert said.
Gil: If Team USA loses, everybody is going to blame LeBron. pic.twitter.com/59ygOyPfrj
— Gilbert Arenas (@GilsArenaShow) August 8, 2024
LeBron leading the U.S. charge
Arenas says detractors have put LeBron in a lose-lose situation in Paris. If the Americans win gold, they will say it was a team effort. But if they don’t, the blame will fall more on “King James” than anybody else.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers superstar leads the U.S. squad in scoring, rebounding, and assists while providing veteran leadership and poise under pressure. Should the Americans lose, Gil believes at least two parties should shoulder the blame before we point the finger at LeBron.
“But in reality, first comes the Committee because there’s questionable things that everybody questioned. Two, the coaching staff cuz you did some things that no one seen coming. You’re benching players that are clearly starters. Sixth man, Edwards, and one of them is still ain’t playing at this moment. From there, we can go and pick players,” Gil said.
Making it about the GOAT debate
Not only is LeBron playing in the Olympics at an age that no other GOAT candidate has done, he is making a strong case to win the Olympic MVP award.
“He’s got four NBA MVPs, four Finals MVPs, he’s got a couple of All-Star game MVPs, mid-season tournament, don’t forget he won that one. He’s got one more that he’s never won – the Olympics MVP, which they just brought back in 2020. Kevin Durant won it in Tokyo. He is assembling a very strong case…He is getting there and that is the one MVP trophy in the basketball world that he’s not put his hands on,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said.
If Arenas is correct, LeBron’s haters will cheer for France again in the gold medal game, hoping for one last chance to crucify the Akron native. However, if Team USA wins, LeBron will not only have one more Olympic gold medal, but he could also take home the Olympic MVP. No matter what the haters say, that would be a great thing to add to his GOAT argument.