The Paris 2024 Olympic Games have a huge attraction in one sport as a whole, Olympic Basketball, which by name may even be the most striking of all, with the presence of great figures from the NBA and the WNBA, the two best leagues in the world.
The men’s action begins on July 27, while for the women, the first duel will take place one day later.
The United States is the big favorite to win the gold medal in both categories; however, other countries want to make the road difficult for them.
Olympic Basketball Men’s Tournament top contenders
After an arduous qualification stage, the IOC has drawn up the men’s basketball tournament with a total of 12 teams, which are divided into three groups. The two best countries in each zone and the two best third-placed teams will qualify for the quarterfinals.
Since Athens 2004, men’s basketball gold has always gone to the same flag: the United States, which this year under Steve Kerr assembled a new Dream Team of basketball players who lead the NBA in many areas.
LeBron James, one of the best players of all time, and Stephen Curry, the best three-point shooter in history, are the two faces of this team, which will have no scoring problems with other stars such as Anthony Edwards, Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Jayson Tatum.
But this quintet is not only an offensive machine, it also has some of the best defenders: Derrick White and Jrue Holiday make up the backcourt of the current NBA champions, the Boston Celtics, and are two players who “dry up” their opponents on the perimeter. In the paint, there are also Bam Adebayo and Anthony Davis, two luxury rim protectors.
The only question mark so far is the role of Joel Embiid, who has looked bad in the preparation games.
LeBron James is looking for his third Olympic gold, and for now, Canada appears as the strongest rival, especially because it has Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who finished second in the NBA MVP voting. He averaged 30.1 points, with 5.5 rebounds and 6.2 assists.
Other stars of this quintet are Jamal Murray, RJ Barrett, and the excellent defenders Dillon Brooks and Luguentz Dort, all outstanding players in the United States basketball league.
Then there is the local team, which has all its faith in Victor Wembanyama, the best rookie in the NBA, thanks to the fact that he is averaging 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, and 3.6 blocks, which is why he is already considered by many experts as the best defender in the league.
Alongside the center, there are other experienced players such as Nicolas Batum, Rudy Gobert or Evan Fournier.
Outside picks
Following the top contenders come two other countries with two NBA stars, Greece with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Serbia with Nikola Jokic.
Giannis got his country into the finals after eliminating Croatia in the playoffs andit cannot be forgotten that he is a two-time NBA MVP. For his part, Jokic is the most valuable player in the American League and is the most dominant center in the world, not only for his points but also for his ability to distribute play.
Finally, we must mention Germany, the reigning world champions, whose great stars are the brothers Franz and Mo Wagner, as well as the experienced Dennis Schröder.
Olympic Basketball Women’s Tournament top contenders
The Olympics decided to apply the same format as the men and what is also similar to the other branch of this sport is that the United States is the great favorite to win the gold medal.
Since 1996, the gold has always gone to the United States, with the addition that they do not know what it is to lose a game in the last seven Olympics (the last time was in 1992).
The WNBA MVP, A’Ja Wilson, is the leader of this team, and her most outstanding teammate is Breanna Stewart.
Australia is a team that aspires to give the big blow, and they hope that the experience of a player like Cayla George will be fundamental to defeating the Americans. Besides, they come from being third in the last World Championship and continue in the same process with coach Sandra Brondello.
France, which is local and won the bronze medal in Tokyo, has the same aspiration for the gold medal.
Outside picks
In the past fairs, the Japanese women won the silver medal and are currently ninth in the FIBA ranking. However, they are not higher in the consideration because they are in a restructuring of the squad.
In addition, they had the misfortune of being in the “group of death” with the United States, Germany, and Belgium.
Finally, it is important to highlight the role of Spain, which chose to call Megan Gustafson, aWNBA player, as its nationalized player and key player in looking for a medal in Paris.
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