The walls around LeBron James, Stephen Curry and their national team players looked like they might easily come down, but order was quickly restored as the United States defeated Canada 86-72 on Wednesday at T-Mobile Arena. It was a flawed debut for a gold medal contender, but one that should be taken as solace given the night’s off-court chaos, on-court carelessness and lofty expectations.
“We started slow, but that wasn’t surprising,” coach Steve Kerr said. “We were a little rusty offensively, especially in the first half, and we had a lot of turnovers, but we showed great intensity defensively and did a great job rebounding. We needed to set the tone for how we wanted to play, and I think we did that.”
Hours before kickoff, USA Basketball announced that Boston Celtics guard Derrick White would replace Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard on the 12-man roster. A statement from the program said the decision to leave Leonard out was made jointly by USA Basketball, the Clippers and Leonard due to ongoing concerns about his recent knee injury. Hill said Wednesday that he and the USA Basketball coaching staff evaluated Leonard’s play and progress over four days of training camp before letting the six-time All-Star go.
“In the end, he was sent home,” Hill said, referring to the grueling logistics of the month-long Olympics. “This is a sprint, not a gradual build-up. We have been open, honest and understanding through all of this. My heart goes out to him. We need to do what’s best for our team, protect our team and maximize our chances of success. We felt we had to pivot. We all tried. We made a valiant effort.”
USA Basketball believed White, a reliable outside shooter and skilled defender, could fill the same role in Paris that he did for the Celtics when they won the championship. White’s case was favored by his past experience at the 2019 FIBA World Cup and his ability to jump in on short notice. The 30-year-old guard is scheduled to link up with his new teammates in Abu Dhabi, the next stop for a five-game exhibition series.
But Celtics forward Jaylen Brown seemed unhappy with the decision. Despite winning the NBA Finals MVP and Eastern Conference Finals MVP, Brown was not selected by USA Basketball. Three of his teammates, Jayson Tatum, Jrue Holiday and White, are headed to Paris.
Brown has previously criticized Nike and its founder Phil Knight, who parted ways with then-Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving following an anti-Semitism controversy in 2022. Brown took to social media on Wednesday to suggest Nike was behind the company ignoring him, writing, “Nike, is this what we do?”
Hill said the USA Basketball Association is “proud of our partners” but has been focused on “putting together teams that complement each other, fit well and give us the best opportunity to be successful.”
“One of the toughest things is to cut guys that you’re a fan of and look forward to watching throughout the season and the playoffs,” he added. “Whatever the theories are floating around, they’re just that: theories.”
With Leonard and Kevin Durant sidelined because he’s nursing a minor calf injury, Kerr started James, Curry, Holiday, Devin Booker and Joel Embiid against Canada. Designed to counter Canadian guards Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jamal Murray, the lineup started the game 0-for-6 from the field and fell behind 11-1. James and Anthony Davis were heavily fouled by Canada, but Canada made up for its smaller size by forcing turnovers and playing aggressively.
Embiid fouled out midway through the third quarter of his international debut. The 2023 NBA MVP finished with just five points and six rebounds in 12 minutes, a worrying start for a player who is central to the U.S.’ ability to play against international stars like Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Victor Wembanyama.
“It’s my first time with FIBA so I’m going to have to get used to it,” Embiid said. “Especially as a big man, if you try to be physical you get penalized right away. Tonight was one of those nights. I’m a quick learner and I’ll adapt.”
Curry relieved the pressure with a three-pointer midway through the first quarter, and Anthony Edwards led the second unit on offense to put the U.S. ahead 41-33 by halftime. Canada offered little response in the third quarter as the U.S. gradually gained the upper hand in talent and depth. Lobs from Curry and James drew thunderous applause from the 20,000-plus fans, and Edwards led all scorers with 13 points.
“Everybody can make a play, so there’s a temptation to procrastinate or overthink every possession,” said Curry, who added 12 points and three assists. “We struggled with that with our first unit. Once we settled in, everybody seemed more relaxed as the game went on.”
President Obama cheered throughout the night from his courtside seat near the television crew, and during breaks in the game, dozens of former USA Basketball players were honored at center court, including Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, Patrick Ewing, John Stockton, Reggie Miller, Cheryl Miller and Lynette Woodard.
Canada coach Jordi Fernandez rested his starters during the fourth quarter as his team shot just 7 of 33 (21.2%) from the field. As the U.S. stars saluted the crowd after beating their northern neighbor, the arena disc jockey played a victory lap to Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” a nasty dig at Canadian rapper Drake.
While many in the crowd sang along, James and Curry were in a serious, thoughtful mood now that the Olympic Games are officially underway. Both stars praised President Obama’s motivational speech to the team on Tuesday night. James said Obama was “one of the greatest people this world has ever seen, with a vision, a mindset and words.” [that] “It always resonates with me,” he said, while Curry said he “got goosebumps” when Obama spoke about the unifying power of sports.
At the end of a long and complicated day, a simple mission emerged.
“He wants us to win,” Curry said of Obama. “That’s what America is known for.”
