There is plenty of excitement surrounding Team USA and its bid to reclaim international basketball superiority by winning the gold medal in the 2024 Paris Olympics. After all, future Hall of Famers Stephen Curry and LeBron James, who have had plenty of battles in the NBA Finals in the past, are teaming up in a competitive setting for the first time in their careers
Curry and James wasted no time showing that they have impeccable chemistry on the court after they combined for an epic highlight in the third quarter of their exhibition game against Team Canada on Wednesday night. With Canada going on a bit of a run to trim the lead to five, Team USA answered back with a 6-0 spurt that was punctuated by an incredible alley-oop from Curry to James in transition.
The sheer star power in that fastbreak is phenomenal, and both Stephen Curry and LeBron James ran that transition opportunity to perfection for Team USA. James retrieved the ball, dished it off to a flanking Curry, who lobbed it up right into the waiting arms of the Los Angeles Lakers star.
Fans expected highlights from this Curry and James team-up, and they definitely delivered, much to the delight of supporters on social media.
“the steph bron connection was real.” – @mentalyentil
“I literally watched the game to see Steph and Bron play together and Steph threw him the ooop They’re the best man.” – @Tha_13Th_
“Bron and Steph in they prime together would’ve been the greatest duo ever.” – @AGledovic
“STEPH CURRY TO BRON, HOLY S**T I CANT.” – @tivenkumarr
“Nothing funnier than everybody seeing how happy Steph and Bron are to be playing on the same team lol.” – @nikotaughtyou
Indeed, this Stephen Curry and LeBron James team-up may be the most ambitious crossover in basketball history. Curry and James have been on opposing sides of the championship equation for far too long. But this alley-oop for Team USA more than justifies the excitement surrounding the Curry and James partnership now that they're united to achieve the same goal in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“Steph and Bron duo must happen in the NBA. IDK!” – @rokuman_san
“Bro seeing Bron and Steph play for the same team is truly a once in a life time experience this s**t crazy.” – @rasual__
“Bron. Steph. Teammates. What a treat for Basketball.” – @MorvalNBA
“Steph and Bron really might be the greatest duo to touch the court. Compliment each other so well and do it at the highest level possible. Respect.” – @GautamRatnamNBA
And the best part of everything is that Team USA began its quest for the 2024 Olympic gold with an 86-72 win over Team Canada, and they should be getting Kevin Durant back healthy soon. Fun times truly are ahead for basketball fans all over the globe.
Stephen Curry and LeBron James to lead Team USA to gold?
It's easy for this version of Team USA to just coast. After all, they have assembled perhaps the greatest Team USA roster of all time, at least in terms of pedigree at the time of national team representation. Stephen Curry, LeBron James, and Kevin Durant have 10 combined rings and seven combined MVPs, and this isn't even taking into account the accolades of Joel Embiid and Jayson Tatum, among others.
Nonetheless, this Team USA squad is as locked in as it gets. There is always a goal to entertain fans, but for James and Curry, the ultimate goal is to play the right way as they dive into their quest to redeem the national team from their fourth-place finish in the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
“Just two guys… we love to play the game of basketball and try to share to each other. … He was able to connect with me on the lob. It’s fun. We play the game at a high level, but more importantly, we just play the game that we love the right way, and that’s the result of it,” James said in his postgame interview with FOX Sports.
At the end of the day, Team USA still has a lot left to polish. Joel Embiid did not have a good game whatsoever, as he racked up a ton of fouls en route to an early exit from the game. The offense also tends to be stagnant at times, and turnovers may be an issue for the team.
But even then, Team USA showed that it can be dominant on both ends of the court. It's all a matter of building better team chemistry, and they might be well on their way to steamrolling the opposition in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
