PARIS – The gold medal – the reason USA Basketball is what it is and does things the way it does – was slipping away.
For 30 minutes, Serbia completely outplayed the U.S. men’s Olympic team. It wasn’t close. Nikola Jokić tried to imitate a human satellite while his compatriots, just like his NBA teammates in Denver, maneuvered around his giant screens to find completely open shots. He was quick-witted; they struck one stab after another. And they hammered them down at a rate that was alarming for the U.S. men. After three quarters, Serbia hit 15 of 30 shots from beyond the arc. That’s usually death for an opponent: high volume And high points. Serbia led by 13 points at the beginning of the fourth quarter.
“They were perfect,” said US coach Steve Kerr about the Serbs. “They played a perfect game. Our coaches said: ‘Villanova – Georgetown.'”
The Americans did not seem like a team that had answers.
But as it turns out, they found a defense you don’t normally associate with the five players who played most of the fourth quarter: Stephen Curry, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, LeBron James and Joel Embiid. Anthony Davis played the first four minutes of the fourth quarter before Embiid came on for the final 7:19 minutes.
Of the other players besides Davis, only James was named to the All-NBA Defensive First-Team selection — and he earned the last of his five first-team honors 11 years ago. Let’s face it. Embiid is known for wearing down opponents with the ball in the box rather than locking them up on the perimeter. Curry, as he showed Thursday, is the best shooter in NBA history. KD has been underrated defensively at times throughout his career, but his Instagram name is Easy Money Sniper, not I Turn Off Your Water. Booker squirts and drives; he doesn’t lock people up. And LeBron is… 39.
But this quintet showed their defensive teeth in the final 10 minutes on Thursday and fought their way back into the game. The U.S. team’s performance in the fourth quarter was anything but pretty. It was about physicality and tenacity and throwing themselves into the uncomfortable to achieve their goal.
The Serbs hit 0 of 9 three-pointers in the final 10 minutes. Yes, Curry was spectacular on offense, scoring 36 points, including nine three-pointers. His shooting kept the U.S. in the game in the first half. But the U.S. team’s incredible fourth-quarter comeback and 95-91 victory that put it in Saturday’s gold medal game against host France was built entirely on defensive courage.
“I think we just turned up the pressure,” Durant said. “We made them lose the ball. And we fought their shots. We knew that at some point their shots were going to be about averages. You’re going to start missing some of those shots. We tried to weather that storm. And when Steph is sinking threes like that, Book is making big threes and Joel is making big shot after big shot. I think we all hit some shots at the right time. And we came out on the break and were able to get it going.”
The Americans switched everything on defense, with James becoming their main defender against Jokić, the NBA’s three-time Most Valuable Player. Embiid took a stand and eliminated Serbia’s top perimeter threats in transitions. Booker harassed Serbia’s tough point guards and broke up some of Serbia’s double-screen sets, forcing the guards to shoot late in the shot clock. KD slipped into Bogdan Bogdanović’s jersey. Curry, true to his nature, didn’t get harassed on post-ups or buried on screens. The Americans were finally able to get Serbia up to speed and out of their comfort zone, allowing them to play freely and uninhibited for three quarters.
“With that lineup with AD, ‘Bron, KD, myself and Book, there was a little more pressure on the ball,” Curry said. “We switched more than we did all game, just to try to keep bodies together, even when you have a small defender defending Jokić or the other big guy (Nikola Milutinov). You don’t give up advantages. And then we just forced them to make difficult shots. There was a little breakdown in the first half and somebody got a clear view and the ball went in, over and over and over. There were difficult shots in the fourth quarter. We still couldn’t rebound, so we’ve got to get that fixed. But pressure and intensity. And we were quick enough to turn defense into offense, and that helped us.”
Embiid did a great job on the perimeter while James battled behind Jokić in the box. He blocked Serbian Ognjen Dobrić’s jump shot, which led to a James drive that tied the game at 84-84 with 3:41 left. James grabbed two straight rebounds that led to fastbreak baskets – a three-pointer from Curry that put the U.S. up 87-86 and his own coast-to-coast drive and point that put the United States up by three at 1:59.
LECAPTAIN AMERICA!
Team USA extends its lead over Serbia. #ParisOlympics
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— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) 8 August 2024
Curry then ripped off a pass from Bogdanović and set off on his own race, getting another fastbreak basket to make it 91-86 with 1:44 left. After a Serbia timeout, Durant jumped Bogdanović in the middle of the court, forcing an over-and-back violation.
“We tried to get them to make tough 2s from the distance,” Booker said. “We put LeBron on Jokić, KD on Jokić. … We prefer those tough 2s to the 3-pointers they made.”
These guys wouldn’t be on this team if they weren’t fiercely competitive. They’re proud. Durant spoke movingly afterward about the pride he feels wearing the U.S. jersey and how the Olympics can, maybe just for a little while, bridge some of the fierce and terrible divisions in our country. There was something extra special about the final 10 minutes of basketball at Bercy Arena on Thursday night, as the deepest, most productive offensive team in the Olympics found its way, forgetting strategy and rotations and digging so very, very deep to keep its dream of defending its 2021 gold medal against Japan alive.
After all, defense is still what wins championships. Or at least it keeps you alive so you can have another chance.
GO DEEPER
US men flee Serbia, Steph Curry takes over
(Top photo of LeBron James and Stephen Curry: Harry Langer / DeFodi Images via Getty Images)
