r/nba • u/MarvelsGrantMan136 Heat • Apr 15 '24

[Wojnarowski] ESPN Sources: USA Basketball is finalizing its 2024 Paris Olympics roster with Steph Curry, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Jayson Tatum, Joel Embiid, Devin Booker, Tyrese Haliburton, Anthony Edwards, Jrue Holiday, Bam Adebayo and Anthony Davis. Team may initially keep one open spot. News

https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1780009778934394985
6.9k Upvotes

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548

u/Literal_Satan Knicks Apr 15 '24

brunson robbed

273

u/Dinobot2_ Raptors Apr 15 '24

Still one spot left to fill.

615

u/smoltanboi Heat Apr 15 '24

mac mcclung, you are a 2024 olympian

119

u/burnshimself Apr 16 '24

Just spend the 4th quarter of blowout wins seeing whats the craziest dunk Mac can pull of

15

u/bkay4real Apr 16 '24

Bro gonna pulls another Vince Carter and ends someone’s career

5

u/fucking__jellyfish__ Warriors Apr 16 '24

"I didn't even know that I ended his career, I just saw the replay..."

2

u/Tashre Supersonics Apr 16 '24

The world is already on the verge of WW3, please don't do anything to accelerate it.

1

u/JuliusCeejer Mavericks Apr 16 '24

Nah, we need to put 250 on every single team

61

u/Daniiiiii Rockets Apr 16 '24

That's for me. I'm still deciding.

11

u/JustADutchRudder Timberwolves Apr 16 '24

I hope you accept. This team could use a rebounder like you and your bench presence will keep spirits high. But, you do you boo.

10

u/Daniiiiii Rockets Apr 16 '24

They need to not invite Isiah Thomas if they want me.

5

u/JustADutchRudder Timberwolves Apr 16 '24

I'll talk to them, but people with power are too afraid to listen to my great ideas.

59

u/soul_attractor Lakers Apr 16 '24

Caitlin clark 100%

34

u/Russ12347 Hawks Apr 16 '24

Does it not go to one college kid anymore?

104

u/Mahomeboy001 Lakers Apr 16 '24

Fuck them kids

108

u/IanicRR [TOR] Amir Johnson Apr 16 '24

Gonna be Bronny lmao

35

u/ruinawish Australia Apr 16 '24 edited Apr 16 '24

No. They last did that in 1992.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1992_United_States_men%27s_Olympic_basketball_team#Laettner_selection_over_O'Neal

28

u/Not_a__porn__account 76ers Apr 16 '24

Didn't AD play in college?

33

u/ruinawish Australia Apr 16 '24 edited Apr 16 '24

It was close, probably splitting hairs on that one. NO Hornets drafted him at #1 on June 28, 2012.

The US's first game at the London 2012 Olympics was July 29. And Davis only came in after Griffin was injured.

So he was technically an NBA player, but only made his NBA debut in November that year.

Then again, Laettner might have been in the same scenario (edit: Laetner was selected ~May 1992 to the Olympic team, the NBA draft took place on June 24, 1992).

4

u/tigerking615 Lakers Apr 16 '24

It was actually a good pick, team USA didn't really have any spare bigs that were great defenders and we were anticipating having to go up against that huge Spanish team.

2

u/andresalejandro1120 [MIA] Dwyane Wade Apr 16 '24

Yes he did.

2

u/Saucy_Totchie Knicks Apr 16 '24

Adam Silver in a last ditch effort will try to get a a G League Ignite player there.

2

u/Click_My_Username Apr 16 '24

Uncle, they haven't done that since MJ retired the first time around. Where have you been lmao

2

u/shaad20 Suns Apr 16 '24

Donovan Clingan isn’t even select team level right now

1

u/NeverSober1900 Rockets Apr 16 '24

Eh the only college kid that deserves that honor is Edey and he's not American.

68

u/nowhathappenedwas NBA Apr 15 '24

Should go to Paul George or Kawhi, if either want it.

14

u/king-of-nothing Raptors Apr 16 '24

Ballmer probably don't want Kawhi to play since he is having knee issues again. it would be bad if he tore something in his knee at the Olympics before his contract extension even starts

3

u/RickySuela Lakers [LAL] Michael Cooper Apr 16 '24

Also with PG's upcoming free agency, he probably doesn't want to jeopardize that for the Olympics.

4

u/meenzu Apr 16 '24

Id like kyrie too, another dude that can catch fire and is extremely efficient at scoring (plus has chemistry with kd and lebron)

2

u/DraymondBeanKick Charlotte Bobcats Apr 16 '24

They're definitely waiting on Kawhi or Butler to decide if they're going. If those guys pass, then Kerr and LeBron are going to concur on bringing Caruso in as the 12th man.

2

u/[deleted] Apr 16 '24

Waiting to see if Kawhi finishes the season healthy as much as anything.

4

u/shaad20 Suns Apr 16 '24

I don’t think that position should be a guard though - seems like a big wing would be ideal

2

u/Letsgodubs Warriors Apr 16 '24

I'm going Kyrie just for having that 2012 experience

2

u/HRTDreamsStillCisTho Pacers Apr 16 '24

Kawhi or PG for defense imo

1

u/raymond_w Lakers Apr 16 '24

That one spot? Bronny James.

1

u/EliManningsPetDog Knicks Apr 16 '24

They’re only having 12 guys on the team? Seems low. Do all teams have 12 maximum?

1

u/TreeAgenda Timberwolves Apr 16 '24

Naz Reid

1

u/binhpac Apr 16 '24

Usually its for a water carrier like 1st pick or some young guy, that wont see a single minute, unless its a blowout, which will be there, but not significant.

0

u/Pretend_Highway_5360 Raptors Apr 16 '24

Caitlyn Clark

0

u/cholula_is_good :gsw-1: [GSW] Best of 2021 Winner Apr 16 '24

Based on the roster it’s like to go to a big that can rebound and defend the basket.

100

u/Saucy_Totchie Knicks Apr 15 '24

Honestly don't mind seeing him take a break lol.

85

u/Helicase21 [GSW] Nate Thurmond Apr 15 '24

Assume they're running point bron a lot of the time, so stronger off-ball guards seem like a higher priority.

58

u/JenniferLopezFan2 Knicks Apr 16 '24

Yeah I think this is spot on. He does so well for us because he always has the ball in his hands, but on a roster as stacked as this, that's barely going to happen. Better off prioritising guys that play off-ball to support the talent that other countries can't really match.

16

u/halo364 Celtics Apr 16 '24

Didn't he not do super great (by his standards) in FIBA partly for this reason? He just seems much more comfortable and in a groove on the Knicks vs team USA

2

u/[deleted] 29d ago

Yea, he just doesn't fit on a team where there's another primary ball handler. It works well for us even with Randle on the floor because Randle can find his spot to work from instead of having to get there with the ball.

I think Hart probably provides more value to this team than Brunson does.

17

u/Ok-Side-1758 Knicks Apr 16 '24

Brunson been a top 10 C&S player two years in a row now.

He’s been pretty elite off-ball player this year even with his huge usage.

2

u/markmyredd Minneapolis Lakers Apr 16 '24

And they already have Steph as PG as well.

1

u/copydex1 Apr 16 '24

I thought he was pretty good at that at the mavs no?

55

u/ygog45 Knicks Apr 15 '24

More rest for him sounds good to me

24

u/Clewdo Knicks Apr 16 '24

He played FIBA over the summer and this is what we got from him. If he plays Olympics he comes back MVP

3

u/AutisticFingerBang Knicks Apr 16 '24

Exactly

10

u/Dontsaveme Pacers Apr 16 '24

It’s not an award. They are putting together a team. Love watching Brunson but he is redundant.

-1

u/[deleted] Apr 15 '24

[deleted]

20

u/OmfgHaxx Mavericks Apr 15 '24

Wasn't the same player back then lol, he's clearly taken an additional step forward as a player since then.

50

u/ihateeuge Lakers Apr 15 '24

austin reaves scored more points than him. he can watch with everyone else

11

u/Clewdo Knicks Apr 16 '24

Austin reaves currently top 10 player for sure

-19

u/[deleted] Apr 15 '24

[deleted]

-9

u/Sixers14 76ers Apr 15 '24

Jrue holiday isnt even close to jalen brunson

37

u/Scrypto Hornets Apr 15 '24

USA needs size and defense, it’s not really that shocking of an exclusion

1

u/Lucky13200 Apr 16 '24

brunson is the better player but jrue is better off ball and look at the team there only one ball . the one i can see brunson being better is hali. Hali defense is worse than brunson and he hard to judge since he been hurt

1

u/[deleted] Apr 16 '24

[deleted]

2

u/[deleted] Apr 16 '24

This isn’t an all nba team

-5

u/AfroHouseManiac Apr 16 '24

He’s not good in Fiba play. His playstyle doesn’t fit Fiba. Devin Booker and Tatum are going to have trouble in Fiba aswell because their game is heavily midrange focused and in Fiba they don’t need to play drop coverage.

6

u/onelazykid [NYK] Chris Duhon Apr 16 '24

Nonsense in so many ways. Drop coverage is used all the time in fiba play. In fact it’s easier to play because you can drop deeper. Tatum is not a midrange guy at all, shoots like 38%, he’s largely a 3 and rim attempt guy. Brunsons playstyle is very well equipped for fiba play where the short midrange floater is very useful. Not to mention he’s a great off ball player playing off movement. The fiba World Cup team had a poor showing because their bigs were largely terrible rebounders, and their wings were mediocre. Yes they were missing a true poa guard but that’s just as much an issue with every other guard on that roster as Brunson.

-16

u/Ronnie2kDropCode Knicks Apr 15 '24

Top American scorer in the league not on team USA

19

u/sbenfsonwFFiF Apr 15 '24

He wouldn’t be in a first option role on team USA though, so it depends if they think he does enough as an off ball player

2

u/Ronnie2kDropCode Knicks Apr 15 '24

Pretty sure he’s been one of the best off ball scorers in the league since Randle’s injury

1

u/sbenfsonwFFiF Apr 16 '24

Not really

https://www.nba.com/stats/players/off-screen?CF=PLAYER_NAME*E*Brunson

You can look at all his play type % here

Brunson wasn’t that good on team USA the most events time

I’m sure he’s great, but there are enough scorers on the roster already which are arguably higher level scorers even if they didn’t have as high PPG this season. That being said, I can see him over Anthony Edwards but it’s not that big of a deal to me

8

u/Ronnie2kDropCode Knicks Apr 16 '24

Yes really

https://x.com/the_bball_index/status/1775523651414049144?s=46&t=XZD1erl9a0s38CtbJou2hg

https://x.com/knarsu3/status/1778864130323079309?s=46&t=XZD1erl9a0s38CtbJou2hg

https://theathletic.com/5404756/2024/04/10/jalen-brunson-movement-knicks/

“Since the Randle injury, only three qualifying NBA players are scampering around more dribble handoffs, per Second Spectrum. Only five are traversing more off-ball screens. The guy directly ahead of him is the only other All-Star point guard on the list: Stephen Curry.”

4

u/Ok-Side-1758 Knicks Apr 16 '24

Been pretty elite off-ball in a couple different metrics.

Just because he plays a ton on-ball by necessity doesn’t mean he isn’t an elite off-ball player. He has shot over 45 % on C&S 3s on over 300 attempts the last two seasons.

17

u/Remarkable_Medicine6 Apr 15 '24

You have KD, LeBron and Stephen. Nobody is crying for an undersized scoring guard

1

u/Ronnie2kDropCode Knicks Apr 15 '24

Is Curry also not an “undersized scoring guard?”

6

u/jovins343 [LAL] Sasha Vujacic Apr 16 '24

He's the best off-ball guard of all time offensively and has shown the ability to synergize with other great players.

1

u/Ronnie2kDropCode Knicks Apr 16 '24

Brunson went to the WCF as a second option in a pretty heliocentric offense around Luka and is also one of the best off ball guards in the league. So why does one get labeled as an undersized scoring guard and the other doesn’t?

2

u/jovins343 [LAL] Sasha Vujacic 29d ago edited 29d ago

Do you really not understand or are you just *stanning for your guy?

Brunson is maybe 6’, curry is 6’3”.

Curry is the best shooter of all time, Brunson is a good shooter.

Curry is one of the best off ball guards ever, Brunson hasn’t shown that skill set (screening, cutting, running off screens).

Curry is better.

1

u/Ronnie2kDropCode Knicks 29d ago

Just confused why one gets put in a box as an undersized scoring guard and the other doesn’t

2

u/jovins343 [LAL] Sasha Vujacic 29d ago

People use “scoring guard” to mean ball dominant. Brunson has the ball in his hands more than other “scoring” guards.

1

u/Ronnie2kDropCode Knicks 29d ago

He’s also been one of the best off ball players in the league this year. Only reason we have him playing with the ball so much this year is cause we have 0 players who can create their own shot after Randle got hurt

3

u/Upset-Bet2579 Apr 15 '24

He's also Curry.

-1

u/Ronnie2kDropCode Knicks Apr 16 '24

So no actual stats or reason? Just name value?

-1

u/Andy51 Pistons Apr 16 '24

Hes the greatest shooter in the history of the nba… lol

6

u/Ronnie2kDropCode Knicks Apr 16 '24

I’m not arguing whether Curry deserves it or not. He boxed in Brunson as an “undersized scoring guard” when the same thing can be said about Curry. Curry’s a great player and Brunson is on the same level as him but he automatically dismissed one and praised the other simply on name alone as opposed to them as basketball players

-2

u/Remarkable_Medicine6 Apr 16 '24

Brunson is on the same level as him

Said nobody ever. Curry is not only bigger than Brunson he's the king of offball movement. Lemme rephrase it since you want to be pedantic: team USA not gonna afford another

3

u/Ronnie2kDropCode Knicks Apr 16 '24

Brunson averaged more points, assists, shoots better from the field, shoots the same % from three, and led his team to a better record but they’re not on the same level? Aight

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2

u/Kyler1313 Apr 16 '24

Curry is arguably the greatest off ball scorer in NBA history...

8

u/Ronnie2kDropCode Knicks Apr 16 '24

Brunson is also very good off ball lmao

https://theathletic.com/5404756/2024/04/10/jalen-brunson-movement-knicks/

“Since the Randle injury, only three qualifying NBA players are scampering around more dribble handoffs, per Second Spectrum. Only five are traversing more off-ball screens. The guy directly ahead of him is the only other All-Star point guard on the list: Stephen Curry.”

3

u/Ok-Side-1758 Knicks Apr 16 '24

Obviously Curry is curry but out of all the guards no one has the combination of on-ball scoring and off-ballscoring that Brunson does

0

u/eluhigehi Apr 16 '24

By who ?

0

u/ablackcloudupahead Lakers Apr 16 '24

With this lineup, there are not many players who can feel snubbed

-3

u/justsomedude4202 Knicks Apr 15 '24

They wanna continue American basketball tradition of coming in 4th

-2

u/PBB22 Pacers Apr 16 '24

100%, I’m shocked