The Lakers are preparing for their first round matchup against the Denver Nuggets, but basketball always has multiple moving parts happening simultaneously.
While the most important goal is winning an NBA title, USA Basketball is full steam ahead, making plans for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. They officially announced the 12-player on Apr. 17 and Lakers LeBron James and Anthony Davis made the list.
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN and Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that these two Lakers making the team, but the jersey unveiling and statement from USA Basketball made it official.
Following the Lakers’ last practice in Los Angeles before heading to Denver for the opening round of the playoffs, LeBron spoke about joining Davis and representing USA at the Olympics.
“It means everything,” LeBron said. “It’s the first time in 12 years, for me, representing Team USA and I’ve had a lot great times representing the red, white and blue in the summer games, the Olympics. I’m looking forward to doing that and doing it alongside (Anthony Davis) is going to be extremely fun.
“We’ve done it before, but he was fresh out of college. We hadn’t won a championship together, we hadn’t spent a lot of seasons together. To be alongside him, and the rest of the 10 guys as well including the coaching staff and the whole staff that’s part of USA Basketball, I just want to thank Grant Hill and Shawn Ford and the rest of those guys over there on picking me, picking AD. When that moment happens, we’ll be extremely excited and extremely happy to put those uniforms back on and go against the world. It’ll be a huge moment.”
LeBron and Davis now join a long line of Lakers who donned the red, white and blue in the summer after a season in purple and gold. Kobe Bryant did it with LeBron and Davis in 2012, and Austin Reaves participated last year as part of the FIBA World Cup, where Team USA reached the semifinals but failed to medal.
Given that World Cup performance, there’s been a lot of chatter about the world catching up to America in basketball. With Team USA bringing this stacked lineup, it’s clear they are bringing their best to Paris.
There will be no excuse this time, and a dominant performance from Team USA will remind the world that while the game is healthy and thriving all around, America is the sole country with the best basketball players and it isn’t particularly close.
This seems like a final hurrah for this generation of players. Steph Curry, LeBron and Kevin Durant are all over 35, so it’s unlikely they will be playing in the next Summer Olympics in 2028 in Los Angeles.
If this is their last dance, they seem prepared to make it a golden waltz and LeBron and Davis will be taking the lead.
