Team USA barely scraped by South Sudan in a nail-biting game at the O2 Arena in London, sparking significant concern within the basketball community. Despite boasting a lineup led by LeBron James, doubts are surfacing about the super-team’s ability to dominate. Analyst Stephen A. Smith identified a critical area that Team USA must address to defend their gold medal at the 2024 Olympics: three-point shooting.
South Sudan’s performance deserved praise, but Team USA’s narrow 1-point victory highlighted their own shortcomings. Stephen A. Smith emphasized the disparity in three-point shooting as a key issue. He pointed out that Team USA was a 43.5-point favorite according to ESPN Bet, yet they barely managed to win.
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“Team USA was favored by 43 points and won by just 1. Who had to save the day for them? A soon-to-be 40-year-old LeBron James. South Sudan hit about 14/33 from three-point range, while Team USA shot only 25%, making just 7 of their 28 attempts. They missed 12 of their first 15 three-point shots,” Smith explained on his YouTube channel.
Smith didn’t hold back in expressing his concerns, stating that Team USA’s gold medal hopes are in jeopardy unless they improve their perimeter shooting.
“They ain’t gonna get it done in the Olympic competition against what’s waiting for them in Paris. If you don’t shoot well from three-point range, if you don’t hit perimeter shots, you may be in jeopardy of not coming home with the gold. That’s the lesson to take from the game against South Sudan,” Smith concluded
Three-point struggles could cost them Olympic gold
Stephen A. Smith‘s critique underscores a crucial point: Team USA needs to significantly enhance their three-point shooting to retain their gold medal. Other nations such as Germany, Serbia, Australia, Canada, and even underdogs like Japan and Puerto Rico have demonstrated strong three-point shooting in the FIBA 2023 World Cup and the lead-up to the 2024 Olympics.
Currently, Team USA is lagging in long-distance shooting. While Kevin Durant‘s absence is notable, the team’s sharpshooters, including Stephen Curry, Devin Booker, and Anthony Edwards, need to find their rhythm quickly. Their combined three-point shooting performance in the last two games (6/27) is far from adequate.
In summary, Team USA must address their three-point shooting deficiencies to maintain their dominance and secure the gold at the 2024 Olympics. The basketball community will be watching closely to see if they can rise to the challenge and refine their game.
