Following a run of five exhibition victories in the USA Basketball Showcase, Warriors players Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and the rest of the U.S. Men’s National Team are set for action in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
USA Basketball Preliminary Round Schedule
Following a run of five exhibition victories in the USA Basketball Showcase, Warriors players Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and the rest of the U.S. Men’s National Team are set for action in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Durant, the most experienced of the Warriors players on Team USA, set an all-time Olympic men’s basketball record for points scored in a single tournament in 2012. He continued his role as a go-to scorer for the U.S. squad, averaging a team-high 15.6 points per game over the course of the recently completed USA Basketball Showcase. Durant started four games, including his first action at Oracle Arena since becoming a member of the Golden State Warriors. He was a steady force from three-point range throughout the five exhibition games, hitting 13 shots from deep on an efficient 46.4% rate. Beyond his scoring role, Durant’s length posed problems for opposing offenses, and he racked up six steals and a pair of blocks in the Showcase. Durant, along with Green, served as a key facilitator on offense as their 14 assists tied them for third-most on the team.
The only Team USA member who sank more threes than Durant in the exhibition series was Thompson. His 14.2 points per game were second only to Durant, and he averaged more than three made shots from deep per contest.
On getting his first dose of on-court action with Durant as a teammate, Thompson said, “It’s going to be a fun year. We have this journey that we have to endure first, but needless to say it’s exciting.”
Green, while he did not score as much as his fellow Warrior Olympians in the five-game exhibition, was the fourth-leading rebounder and tied for third in assists on the star-studded American roster.
Together, the Warriors trio helped lead Team USA to an impressive average margin of victory of 43 points per game. While the U.S. team dominated in almost every facet of the game, their rebounding prowess was especially noteworthy, averaging 48.2 boards per game compared to just 26.8 by their opponents. The team shot just over 49% from the floor while holding their opponents to a combined sub-35% shooting clip. The exhibition series provided Team USA with a chance to jell in advance of their Olympic competition.
On team chemistry, Green said, “It’s a great group of guys who really enjoy being around each other. We spend a lot of time together off the court, and it’s not by force, it’s just that guys want to be around each other, enjoy being around each other. It’s great vibes with this team.”
This strong team chemistry, combined with the immense talent on the roster, gives Team USA gold-medal aspirations in Rio, and their first Olympic test will be this Saturday against China. Both teams are familiar with each other, having just competed in two games in the USA Basketball Showcase. Team USA is in Group A, and as such will follow their initial game against China with a contest against Venezuela on Monday, who they also played on the showcase run. They continue on August 10 with Australia, whose lineup will feature former Warriors center Andrew Bogut, and they’ll wrap up the Preliminary Round against Serbia and France on the 12th and 14th, respectively.
The French roster features several NBA mainstays, including Tony Parker and Nicolas Batum, and figures to pose one of the biggest threats to an undefeated run by the American squad.
“The challenge is not to take them lightly,” Thompson said on playing against some talented international rosters. “Respect your opponent.”
Following the five games in the preliminary round, the competition moves on to the quarterfinals which includes the top four teams in Group A and B in a single-elimination tournament. The gold-medal team will have to win three straight knockout stage games after advancing from the preliminary round.
The U.S. squad has won gold in five of the last six Olympics since NBA players joined the competition, and the Warriors trio of Durant, Thompson and Green will play a role in determining if that dominant run continues.