With the Olympics underway in the group state, Team USA is currently 2-0 largely due to the play of Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James. Team USA has one more game in group play on Saturday against Puerto Rico with a chance to finish 3-0 before the medal round. FIBA has released their updated list for the top contenders for Olympics MVP with LeBron James at the top of the list.
LeBron James is the second of two Team USA members who are in the running for Olympics MVP with the other being Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant who rounds out the top five. The other three players in the top five are Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of Canada, Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic of Serbia and Brooklyn Nets guard Dennis Schroder of Germany.
The bottom half of the Olympics MVP race is San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama of France, Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey of Australia, Memphis Grizzlies big man Santi Aldama of Spain, Toronto Raptors wing RJ Barrett of Canada and Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo of Greece. If James can help lead Team USA to the gold medal, that will certainly help his MVP chances.
LeBron James is the veteran leader for Team USA at the Olympics
When LeBron James first participated in the Olympics, he had just completed his rookie season in the NBA with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He was a member of the 2004 team in Athens, Greece who surprisingly finished with a bronze medal. He was then a part of the 2008 squad dubbed, ‘The Redeem Team,' that was led by the late Kobe Bryant.
Now, his is fourth Olympic games, James has taken over the Kobe role as the leader of Team USA. During Team USA's most recent win against South Sudan, James finished with 12 points, seven rebounds, five assists and one steal while shooting 5-of-9 from the field. During their first win against Serbia, James finished with 21 points, seven rebounds, nine assists and one steal whole shooting 9-of-13 from the field.
When the 2024-25 NBA season begins, James will be the oldest player in the league. He will reach age 40 before the season is over. This past year, the Lakers finished in the play-in for the second straight season. They defeated the New Orleans Pelicans to earn the seventh seed in the West. They were eliminated by the Denver Nuggets in five games in the first round and fired head coach Darvin Ham.
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