Portland Trail Blazers fans should rejoice as Damian Lillard has finally received the help he’s needed for years; it only took three games with Team USA to get there.
With their 119-84 victory over the Czech Republic, USA Basketball has officially clinched the second seed in Group A and will advance on to the elimination round. Their win has also ensured that the team won’t face any of the group winners until the second-round of the tournament at least.
Between this win and their last match against Iran, USA has started to look more like the international basketball juggernaut that has decimated every country in its path of past years. Hopefully, this upswing is more than just a result of the differential in competition between their last two opponents and their first matchup in France.
USA Basketball leaned on Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard takes a backseat
Through the first two games, Damian Lillard appeared to be the clear leader of this year’s iteration of the Olympic squad. Against the Czech Republic though, Kevin Durant led the way for the Americans. Dame went cold from deep, finishing with eight points and three boards and dimes a piece, shooting only 2-8 from beyond the arc.
The Slim Reaper tallied 23 points, six rebounds, and eight assists, shooting an outrageous 73 percent from the field. Jayson Tatum actually led the team in scoring with 27 points, scoring 14 of them in the fourth quarter of an already decided game.
The team showed much more offensive balance in their third official contest, as all players aside from Keldon Johnson and Jerami Grant, both of whom played four minutes a piece, added to the scoring column.
The time for tinkering is over
Coach Gregg Popovich ran out the same starting lineup as he did in the victory over Iran, featuring: Dame, Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday, Kevin Durant, and Bam Adebayo.
This seems to be the lineup that Pop will continue with throughout the course of the elimination round, barring any specific matchup needs.
Hopefully this group will be the next in a longline of gold medal starters. The quarterfinals begins on Monday, August 2nd. USA will know their first opponent following the final group game between Spain and Slovenia, which tips off at a bright-and-early 4:20 AM Eastern on Sunday, August 1st.