Following Team USA's gold-medal victory over France in the finals of the Olympic Games, LeBron James was named the men's basketball MVP. While James played well throughout the Olympics, Stephen Curry stood out in the semifinals and final, which led former NBA player Stephon Marbury to call out the MVP decision.
James and Curry, two of Team USA's oldest players, were also two of the stacked team's best players. During their time in Paris, Curry and James led the team in scoring (14.8 points per game for Curry, 14.2 for James) and they each were vital parts of the Americans' offense, with James serving as the primary playmaker (evident by his team-high 8.5 assists per game) and Curry terrifying opposing defenses with his historic sharpshooting (evident by a 47.8% three-point percentage).
However, Marbury, who played 13 years in the NBA and experienced great success in China afterward, said James did not deserve to be named MVP of the Olympics over Curry.
“They gave the MVP to the wrong player,” Marbury wrote on Instagram. “Maybe they called out the wrong name by accident. I think we need to try to rewind ⏪ the moment when @stephencurry30 displayed himself as the best shooter who ever touched the ball. In international ball, if you can’t shoot, you can’t have the ball at the end of the game. I get LeBron is the King to many, but let me say this: when you give him what he doesn’t deserve, you basically say that because of what he’s done, he should receive such a high honor on the biggest stage. No, he didn’t earn it this time.”
LeBron James and Stephen Curry finish possibly final Olympics with gold
For Stephen Curry, Team USA's Olympic gold medal in Paris was his first. Despite being one of the best NBA players for more than a decade, Curry had never participated in the Olympics until this year, when he got the chance to play for Steve Kerr, his Golden State Warriors coach, and team up with possibly the best collection of talent ever.
That collection included LeBron James, who had not joined the Olympic team since winning gold in 2012. However, like Curry, who turned 36 earlier this year, the 2024 Olympics may have been the final one for 39-year-old James.
“No, I can't see myself playing in L.A. [for the 2028 Olympics], but I also didn't see myself playing in Paris,” James said after the victory over France. “Four years from now, no, I can't see myself [playing at the Olympics].”
Curry similarly is uncertain of whether he will play when the Olympics come to Los Angeles in four years.
“This might not come around again,” Curry said according to Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press. “It was very, very special.”
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