LeBron James has been laser-focused on his quest for the fifth NBA Championship. With the Lakers entering the final part of the regular season, the race for the playoffs is at the top of King James’ agenda. But once the NBA season concludes in April, all the focus will shift towards the Paris Olympics.
As USA is set to make its 20th appearance in the summer event, the NT front office is already chalking out the plans. With a star-studded catalogue to choose from, the roster will ultimately be trimmed down to 12 players. Among those LeBron James’ selection remains a matter of close scrutiny.
Is LeBron James in the USA Basketball team for Paris Olympics?
The Golden State Warriors tried their best to make the veterans LeBron James and Stephen Curry play in the same team but were unsuccessful. There is still a possibility that the on-court rivals will play together wearing the same jerseys.
As per reports, the players who are anticipated to be taking part in the USA Basketball team for the Summer Olympics 2024 are the LA Lakers legend LeBron James, the Warriors star Stephen Curry, the Suns’ Kevin Durant and Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday and one of the most talked about MVP candidate Jayson Tatum from the Boston Celtics. Other players in contention are Anthony Davis, Tyrese Haliburton, Anthony Edwards, Bam Adebayo and the Sixers’ Joel Embiid.
LeBron was having a decent season according to his high standards, averaging 25.2 points, 7.1 rebounds and 7.9 assists until his ankle injury showed up. He was seen struggling in the NBA All-Star Game because of his injury although he showed up in three of the four games that the Lakers played after coming back from the All-Star break.
He is going pretty strong averaging 30.7 points per game in the last three matches. LBJ led the Lakers to a stunning 4th quarter comeback against the Clippers in the most recent game for the franchise.
Although the 4-time NBA Champion has mentioned that he is prioritizing his health at the moment, if he stays fit, there is no reason why fans won’t see him at the Paris Olympics.
What is LeBron’s record for USA B-Ball team?
From winning two gold medals in the Olympics to being the USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year in 2012, LeBron James has achieved it all with the national team since debuting for the NT in 2004 Athens Olympic.
In his debut tournament, his most appearances were off the bench, and he managed a stat line of 5.8 points and 2.6 rebounds per game in eight games. Team USA eventually managed to secure a bronze medal finish in that campaign.
In 2006 he made his FIBA World Championship debut and this time he played a more influential role in the team. With his 13.9 PPG, 4.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game, USA went on to have an 8-1 record before settling for a bronze medal.
The next year saw LeBron participating in the 2007 FIBA Americas Championship where he dropped 18.1 points per game, 3.6 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game helping the team earn a gold medal. In a memorable final, LeBron went on to score 31 points against Argentina which was the highest scored by a USA player in Olympic qualifiers.
After the win, LBJ said, “I don’t think we understood what it meant to put on a USA uniform and all the people that we were representing in 2004. We definitely know that now.”
USA went on an unbeaten run in the 2008 Beijing Olympics to capture a gold medal. After missing out on the 2010 FIBA World Championship, LeBron returned for the London Olympics in 2012.
King James went on to have a successful campaign and bagged yet another gold medal. LeBron, in the process, became the USA men’s Basketball team’s all-time top scorer. To date, LeBron has played on 68 occasions for the NT and amassed 979 points, 281 rebounds, and 238 assists.
Michael Jordan was the first player to win the league MVP, Finals MVP, a Championship title and an Olympic gold medal all in the same year (1992). LeBron James replicated the same afterwards in 2012.
