Los Angeles Lakers superstar Anthony Davis is preparing to help lead Team USA to a gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. The team’s first group stage game is on Sunday against Nikola Jokic and Serbia, meaning Davis, Bam Adebayo and Joel Embiid will have their work cut out for them defensively.
Luckily, Davis has been nothing short of dominant defensively for Team USA during their preparative exhibition games. While he has not been in the starting lineup, he has completely changed the game for the United States in a bench role. Him and Adebayo have been particularly successful alongside one another.
Davis has been an incredible defender since his days at the University of Kentucky, when he led the nation — and every full team in the country — in blocks during his lone season. And his role with Team USA is reminiscent of those days, via Mason Williams for USA Basketball:
“It kind of takes me back to my college days where I was just dominating,” Davis said. “I could block shots, rebound, just be a presence. I think just having us commanding the paint and on the defensive end is going to help us out.”
It’s not just Davis’ excellence in the paint that he believes will help the United States, but the full trio of All-Star big men:
“Honestly, we want to get back that dominance on the inside,” Davis said, “and I think me, Bam and Jo is a good start for us. What we can do offensively, what we can do defensively.”
The United States is undoubtedly favored to win the gold in Paris in August. However, it is by no means a guarantee and could be one of the hardest paths the nation has had to gold in over a decade. International talent has only gotten better and the NBA has strayed farther and farther from the FIBA game played at the Olympics.
If USA is going to win the gold, it will be done on the defensive end, as Davis says. And it will be up to Davis, Embiid and Adebayo to set the tone for the full roster. But if the Lakers star can dominate the way he did at Kentucky, it shouldn’t be an issue even as the games get tighter past the group stage.
Lakers star LeBron James has best Team USA nickname
In a simple straw poll of the Team USA roster, Lakers star LeBron James was voted as having one of the best nicknames on the team. King James has been one of the league’s best nicknames over his two decades in the league, but he had some stiff competition with Kevin Durant’s Slim Reaper.