The uber-talented USA Basketball men's team hasn't made things easy for itself through five exhibition games ahead of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Team USA squeaked by yet again Monday in London, defeating the Franz Wagner-led Germany squad 92–88 at O2 Arena. The Americans trailed in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter before LeBron James took over and secured the win.
"I've learned we're beatable if we don't execute the details of what teams know they have to do to beat us—the extra possessions, not taking care of the ball, fouling too much," Curry said after the win. "It has nothing to do with our offensive game. Obviously, Bron has been taking over the fourth quarter and giving us a huge bump."
“We haven’t played our best offensive game yet.”
— NBA (@NBA) July 22, 2024
Steph Curry after #USABMNT 5th and final exhibition game 👀 pic.twitter.com/rPEw2gQ76O
Team USA went 5–0 in exhibition play, but it wasn't pretty. The Americans opened with an 86–72 win over Canada in Las Vegas and took care of business against Australia (98–92 win) and Serbia (105–79 victory) in Abu Dhabi. However, Team USA trailed South Sudan by as many as 16 points before escaping with a 101–100 victory on Saturday, and their performance against Germany wasn't as dominant as expected in their final Olympic tune-up.
Team USA shot 50% from the field and 35.3% from three-point range, but the offense looked stagnant at times without James on the floor. And the defense wasn't much better, allowing five German players to score in double figures, including the Wagner brothers Franz (18 points) and Moritz (12 points).
Curry, however, still believes Team USA has its best basketball waiting for the team in Paris.
"We haven't played our best offensive game yet. When we lock in defensively and rebound, nobody can really beat us," Curry said. "That's how we've been coming back these last two games. Execute the details, just playing solid, hard-nosed basketball. We'll be fine."
Team USA is still the favorite to bring home the gold medal for a fifth straight Olympic Games. It just might be a bit more difficult than many imagined when the team rolled out its roster of James, Curry, Kevin Durant and a herd of other NBA stars.
Coach Steve Kerr and the American team is scheduled to begin the group phase of Olympic play on July 28 against Serbia.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Steph Curry Shares Biggest Takeaway After Team USA's Latest Nail-Biting Win.
