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PARIS — U.S. men’s Olympic basketball coach Steve Kerr knows how good LeBron James is from coaching against him in four consecutive NBA Finals.
But after coaching him for more than a month for the 2024 Paris Olympics, Kerr has a greater appreciation of what James does.
“I just like coaching him rather than coaching against him,” Kerr said just before the U.S. opened group play at the Olympics. “It’s so fun to see him up close and get to know him a little bit and watch him with his teammates. I mean there’s a reason he’s LeBron James – to see him at 39 doing everything he’s doing, dominating games, leading practices, setting an example for everybody. He’s incredible.”
That appreciation grew tenfold, if not more, after James, Steph Curry and Joel Embiid spearheaded a dazzling comeback and saved the U.S. from what would have been a humbling and disappointing loss to Serbia in the semifinals at these Summer Games.
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The U.S. defeated Serbia 95-91 on Thursday – after trailing by 13 to start the fourth quarter – and will play France in the gold-medal game on Saturday. Team USA is trying to win its fifth consecutive gold medal.
James was once again spectacular. He had 16 points, 12 rebounds (all defensive) and 10 assists and locked in defensively in the fourth quarter as the U.S. stormed back.
“LeBron James is such an amazing basketball player,” Kerr said. “He guarded (three-time NBA MVP Nikola) Jokic most of the fourth quarter and just all the little stuff that he was doing defensively to thwart Serbia – rebounding, pushing the ball in transition.”
Said James: “Big-time win for us. We knew we were going to be challenged. We knew it was going to be the toughest game up to date, but it was a true total effort.”
It was not a one-man show by any stretch. Curry scored 36 points, Embiid had 19 and Kevin Durant had seven of his nine points in the decisive fourth quarter in which the U.S. outscored Serbia 32-15.
But James led the charge. At 39 years old, he has been the best player at the Olympics.
James was a member of the 2004 Athens Games team that won a disappointing bronze (he played little as a 19-year-old); he was a member of the teams that won gold in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012, then took a break from international play.
So he is relishing this moment.
You don’t need to wonder how seriously James takes this. He wouldn’t have committed to playing for Team USA after a 12-year hiatus if it didn’t mean something to him. And his desire to win another gold medal was on display against Serbia. He was close to losing, but he didn’t let it happen.
It’s his last Olympics, and as the sun begins to set on his basketball career, he acknowledged why this is special.
“I don’t know how many opportunities and moments I’m going to get like this to be able to compete for something, compete for something big and play in big games, and tonight was a big game,” James said.
That James who takes over a game is still around. In the fourth quarter, James had six points, six rebounds and three assists. He scored two of his buckets on coast-to-coast driving layups following rebounds and his aggressive defense on Jokic allowed his teammates to cut off the good 3-point attempts Serbia had in the first three quarters.
Kerr hasn’t passed on an opportunity to praise James.
“LeBron puts his imprint on the game in so many different ways,” he said. “It’s not just his skill and his strength and his size, but it’s his emotion, his confidence, just the way he infuses our team with energy and confidence at 39. It’s just amazing.”
Follow NBA reporter Jeff Zillgitt on social media @JeffZillgitt.
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