Steph Curry stars in USA's overwhelming rout of Serbia and Nikola Jokic in pre-Olympics clash
Updated 17/07/2024 at 22:26 GMT+1
Steph Curry scored 24 points as the USA routed Serbia 105-79 in a pre-Olympic exhibition match in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday. Curry is two weeks out from his Olympic debut and will play alongside a potentially historic line-up of USA talent, including LeBron James. Serbia serves as a huge rival for the United States in Paris, led by three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic.
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Video credit: TNT Sports
Team USA improved to 3-0 on their pre-Olympics tour as they overpowered Serbia 105-79 in an exhibition game on Wednesday in Abu Dhabi.
The United States got an early look at one of its opponents for the Paris Games when Steve Kerr's squad faced Nikola Jokic's Serbia.
With his official Olympic debut less than two weeks away, Steph Curry scored 24 points - 18 of which he put up in the first 11 minutes.
Bam Adebayo, who alongside Anthony Davis made life extremely difficult for three-time NBA MVP Jokic. Adebayo added 17 points and seven rebounds, while Davis scored seven points, seven rebounds, and made six blocks.
Davis had six blocks, including a pin off the glass at the eight-minute mark in the fourth quarter that preceded a standing ovation.
Jokic, who dominated possession as he tried to get his team-mates into the game both offensively and defensively, finished with eight points.
"Bam and AD together are really something, just the switching, but they can also protect the rim and be in a drop if we go to that coverage," head coach Kerr said.
Here, Kerr started with Curry, Jrue Holiday, Jayson Tatum, LeBron James and Joel Embiid. He then made his replacements five at a time, introducing the likes of Adebayo and Davis, and then Anthony Edwards, Devin Booker, and Tyrese Haliburton in what is a terrifying depth of personnel.
"The strength of the team is the depth, and so if we can play in four or five-minute bursts of just playing intense defence, hitting bodies, rebounding being physical, then it makes sense to play that way," Kerr added.
Edwards came off the bench to score 16 points in 16 minutes in the dominant win and is quickly proving himself to be the side's most consistent point scorer.
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Adebayo made only 15 three-pointers for the Miami Heat last season but notched up three against Serbia alone, leading to LeBron James anointing him as a "splash brother" at the game's end.
"I made the first one so I kept shooting," said Adebayo.
Serbia is likely the USA's strongest rival for the gold medal in Paris. Obviously led by Jokic, they also have size and experience and the potential to trouble the USA on their day. They meet again on July 28 in the first Pool C game for both countries in the Olympics.
"We've still got so much room to improve," James said. "But we want to continue to get better and not waste opportunities, I felt like tonight we got better."
Team USA play two more games before the Olympics' group stage begins this month, facing South Sudan next Saturday in London.
discovery+ is the streaming home of the Olympic Games, and the only place you can watch every moment of Paris 2024 this summer
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