The U.S. team will have some strong hitters at the upcoming Paris Olympics.
USA Basketball is finalizing its summer tournament roster, which will feature LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Joel Embiid. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports.. The roster also reportedly includes Kevin Durant, Jayson Tatum, Devin Booker, Tyrese Haliburton, Anthony Edwards, Jrue Holiday, Bam Adebayo and Anthony Davis.
Team USA may choose to keep one spot open initially, according to reports. The team will be coached by Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr. Los Angeles Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue, Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra, and Gonzaga University coach Mark Few will serve as assistants.
Tatum, Durant, Booker, Holiday and Adebayo return from the team that won gold at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, but James was not on that team. He will be returning to the Olympics for the first time since the U.S. team won gold at the 2012 London Games.
This will be James' fourth Olympics. He also won a gold medal with Team USA in 2008 and a bronze medal in 2004, the last time America failed to win a gold medal.
The Paris Games will be Curry's first Olympics. He was scheduled to play for the United States in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, but withdrew due to knee and ankle injuries.
This will also be Embiid's first game after committing to play for the United States in October against France and his native Cameroon. Embiid holds dual American and French citizenship.
The U.S. team is looking to make up for missing out on a medal at last summer's FIBA World Cup in the Philippines. Among the other teams, the hosts France team could feature Victor Wenbanyama and Rudy Gobert, the Serbian team could feature Nikola Jokic, and Canada expect to feature Shai-Gilgeous-Alexander. Strong competition between teams is expected.
