When the Summer Olympics get underway in Paris later this month, the men's basketball competition will be one of the most popular events. Team USA is playing a series of exhibition games prior to the start of the team's official games, and head coach Steve Kerr is using those pre-Olympics games to assess his team.
He is likely to change his team's starting lineup when they take the court against Australia Monday in Abu Dhabi. Both Jayson Tatum of the NBA champion Boston Celtics and Anthony Edwards of the Minnesota Timberwolves are likely to be in the starting lineup against the Australian team. Tatum and Edwards took reps with the starters during Sunday's practice session.
LeBron James, Devin Booker, Steph Curry, Jrue Holiday and Joel Embiid started in the first exhibition game against Canada. The three-guard lineup was considered advantageous because Canada featured significant strength at the guard position.
Kerr had said earlier that he will try different starting lineups in the exhibition games to figure out which groupings will work best once the Olympic competition gets underway. He may finalize a regular starting lineup once the tournament starts, or he could make changes depending on the competiton Team USA faces on a game-by-game basis.
In the first game against Canada, Embiid fouled out midway through the third quarter while competing against Kelly Olynyk and Dwight Powell. While Embiid clearly has size and strength, questions have been raised about how he will do against big men who can run and stretch the floor.
Derrick White arrives in Abu Dhabi
The loss of Kawhi Leonard to a knee injury means that he has been replaced by Derrick White of the Celtics. White arrived in Abu Dhabi early Sunday, but it is not known how much action he will see against Australia.
Additionally, Kevin Durant has missed recent practice sessions due to a calf injury. Team USA Executive Director Grant Hill has not made any move to to replace Durant at this point, but if Durant's condition does not improve, a personnel change could be made. Team USA has until July 27 to finalize its roster.
In addition to the game Monday against Australia, Team USA will face Serbia July 17 in Abu Dhabi. The team will move to London shortly after facing the Serbians and take on South Sudan July 20. The final exhibition game will see Team USA take on Germany July 22.
Once the Olympic competition gets underway, Team USA will compete in Group C. The opponents in the opening round of the Olympic tournament include Serbia, July 28; South Sudan, July 31 and Puerto Rico, August 3. After the opening round, the knockout phase of the tournament will be held in Paris. The gold medal game is scheduled for August 10 at Accor Arena.
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