Steve Kerr understands the magnitude of the job ahead, but on the second day of the NBA playoffs, news that was largely overshadowed by Game 1 of the four on the court told the Warriors coach that He frankly informed about his huge summer assignment.
The NBA announced Sunday the three finalists for each of the seven official awards to be awarded in the coming weeks, and three players lined up. Toward the MVP award Here's a glimpse of what's in store for Kerr and Team USA once they compete in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Luka Donic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic are all ineligible for Team USA. Doncic will represent Slovenia, Gilgeous-Alexander will represent Canada, and Jokic will represent Serbia.
This news marks the sixth year in a row that the American-born league's MVP has been a person born in another country.
It's the latest reminder that the wide talent gap that once defined American basketball exceptionalism is rapidly narrowing invisibly. This is the third consecutive season in which no American-born player made it to the finals.
An examination of the top five vote-getters for each of the past four seasons reveals that only three Americans have been selected: Jayson Tatum was fourth last year, and Devin Tatum in 2022. Booker took fourth place, followed by Stephen Curry in third place and Chris Paul in fifth place in 2021.
In 2018, the top five vote-getters were Americans.
If this trend isn't too alarming for the red, white and blue, consider that Kerr's USA team finished fourth at last summer's FIBA World Cup. This group lacked a player with a Hall of Fame-worthy resume, so they lost their final two games to Germany, then Canada, and returned home without a medal.
After an ignominious season with the Warriors, Kerr is now facing something of an ultimatum. He either wins the gold medal or returns to the United States in disgrace.
The roster of members considered Redeem Team II is built for the quest. Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, and LeBron James are three of the best players of their generation. Anthony Davis, Joel Embiid and Kawhi Leonard are about to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. At the 2020 Olympics, Bam Adebayo, Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday and Jayson Tatum won gold for Team USA in Tokyo. Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton are the next generation's best players.
“We obviously got a masterpiece,” Kerr told NBC Sports Bay Area last week.
Team USA's roster is the best America has to offer, but Embiid has an asterisk. He was born in Cameroon, immigrated to the United States as a teenager, acquired French citizenship in 2022, and became a naturalized U.S. citizen two months later.
Embiid initially said he would play for France, but opted to join Team USA last October. This did not sit well with some people in France.
“Team USA, who can beat you with him? Come on, nobody's coming,” Jean-Pierre Ciutat, president of the French Basketball Federation, told The Athletic. “This is an easy way for him to win an Olympic medal.”
And Ciutat's salty reaction is mild compared to the one uttered by France's former Olympian Frédéric Weiss.
“I think this kid is a dirty guy and at the same time a great player,” Weiss said on France's RMP radio show. “I hate him for what he has done. I think he has no respect for France and for those who ask for a French passport but cannot get one. And under the pretext that he's a great athlete, I think it's a scandal.
France had planned to use Embiid in a “triple tower” frontcourt with Rudy Gobert and Victor Wembaneyama. At 7 feet tall, Embiid would be the shortest.
The scar is real. French President Emmanuel Macron reportedly contacted Embiid last fall, hoping to convince the 76ers big man to work with France. Weiss' exaggeration can be forgiven. He has a radio show he wants to sell. But there are clear reasons for such disappointment and bitterness.
France believes Embiid can win gold on the biggest international stage. Imagine the euphoria after the French men's team won its first Olympic gold medal on that turf.
Such confidence would be justified by the fact that in 2021 it was France that ended America's Olympic winning streak with 25.
Team USA players joined Kerr and his assistants (Gonzaga's Mark Few, Los Angeles Clippers' Tyronn Lue, and Miami Heat's Erik Spoelstra) for training camp in Las Vegas on July 6. join together.
“It's a six-week journey, it happens quickly,” Kerr said last week. “So we usually don't do too much complicated stuff. We kind of know what we're going to run and how we're going to operate.”
Having a plan is a great place to start, not only for Kerr's international reputation, but also for the reputation of his players.
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