LONDON — Flag bearer by morning, game changer by evening. Monday belonged to LeBron James.
For the second time in as many games, James put Team USA on his back in a hard-fought Olympic exhibition contest, this time propelling the Americans to a 92-88 win over Germany in the final tune-up before the Paris Games.
James — who will carry the American flag for the United States delegation during the Paris Olympics opening ceremony on Friday — scored 11 of his game-high 20 points in the final 3:57 of the fourth quarter in a game the Americans trailed when the period started.
With the Germans, who won the 2023 FIBA World Cup and looked Monday like they could be the biggest threat to the Americans at the Olympics, charging late, James drained an open 3 with 1:26 left to put the U.S. up 90-86. He added a layup for good measure on the next possession.
James learned Monday morning he would be one of two flag bearers for the entire USA Olympic delegation at the Opening Ceremony along the River Seine. He will be the first U.S. men’s basketball player to ever carry the stars and stripes.
Ball game.
“Every day is a good day for me,” James said. “I’m blessed to play the game that I love to play. I’m healthy, my family’s healthy so the game of basketball is extra credit for me.”
The last two games could’ve gone either way for the Americans. The South Sudanese pushed Team USA to the brink Saturday, but James pushed back with 25 points and the game-winning layup on a bullish drive to the hoop with 8 seconds left.
On Monday, he did his work a little earlier in the final quarter. He shot 8 of 11 overall with six rebounds and four assists, and his dunk off of a back cut with 3:57 to go put the Americans ahead for good, 83-80. He followed that with a gritty steal and layup.
“We were tested by a great Germany team — they were a world champion last year, so it was a good test for us and I’m glad we were able to once again, keep our composure and persevere,” James said.
The next game counts. Team USA opens Olympic play Sunday against Serbia in Lille, France, at 11:15 a.m. ET.
Had himself a night.
Joel Embiid continues to look better with each outing and contributed 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists — providing the answer the Americans needed (and didn’t have last summer) against Germany’s considerable size. Embiid looked quicker and played more fluidly at both ends, showing off incredible athleticism with a block on a would-be dunk attempt by Isaac Bonga in the second quarter. Anthony Edwards took that block the length of the floor, crossed over a German defender and skied for a Jordanesque dunk.
“The people that don’t watch me don’t know that every season it takes me a couple games to get going, so this was nothing different,” Embiid said. “This is what preseason games are for, so you can come in, get your rhythm … and do whatever you can to win.”
Steph Curry scored 13 points but was 1-of-7 on 3s. Edwards added 11 points and Anthony Davis scored 10 points with seven rebounds off the bench. Edwards’s defensive intensity was notable; it looked like his primary assignment was on that side of the court.
Then again, the American second unit struggled for the second consecutive game, unable to be the separator when the opponent turned to its bench. The starters scored 61 points, while the American bench crew saw the team’s lead disappear in the third quarter.
The original plan was for the U.S. reserves to overwhelm their counterparts. But teams who stay with their starters for longer stretches have mitigated the intended effect of rotating in five fresh, mega-talented players every 5 minutes or so.
Franz Wagner, one of four NBA players on Germany’s roster, led them with 18 points. Andreas Obst, who burned the Americans in the World Cup semifinal last year, nearly did it again with 14 points and four more 3s.
Dennis Schröder scored 13 points and contributed 10 assists but shot 3 of 15. He was blocked from behind by James in the second quarter. Daniel Theis added 13 points and Mo Wagner contributed 12 points and seven boards off the bench.
At a minimum, Germany showed the World Cup championship was no fluke, regardless of who the U.S. had in uniform. The U.S. only kept two players from the World Cup team and replaced the others with bona fide superstars headed for the Hall of Fame, and that group trailed the Germans by five late in the third quarter. Obst, who plays in Germany’s pro league, has eight 3s in the last two games against the Americans.
Last summer the Germans manhandled the U.S. in the semifinals physically.
There was a memorable incident early in that game when German center Johannes Voightmann, who is over 7-feet tall, took Josh Hart with one arm and threw him through the air while corralling a rebound.
The rest of the world can’t do that to this American team, but they can still beat them.
“I thought we played our best basketball in the third quarter, played with great tempo, and then somebody named LeBron James made some pretty good plays at the end,” German coach Gordie Herbert said.
Obst added: “It’s (about) playing against the best. It drives me to prove my game against them.”
Kevin Durant (calf strain) was out again. He did not play in any of Team USA’s five preseason games and is considered day-to-day, USA coach Steve Kerr said.
For the third time in five games, Kerr started with James, Curry, Embiid, Devin Booker and Jrue Holiday, who contributed 10 points. Kerr also used Derrick White exclusively as the backup point guard, bumping Tyrese Haliburton out of the rotation.
The Americans have been plagued by turnovers throughout the preseason, and they coughed up 14 more Monday (costing them 15 points). They defended tenaciously in the fourth quarter, though, holding Germany to just 17 points while LeBron was doing what he does on offense.
“I think we can get a lot better,” Kerr said. “We’re getting to a place now where we’re getting comfortable with rotations and I think guys are getting familiar with each other, but we can do a lot of things better with our passing, which was not great tonight. They put a lot of defensive pressure on us and we turned it over a few times. I think we can tighten up our game and get better. And that’s the plan here in the next couple of weeks.”
It’s true, Team USA made it through the preseason with a spotless 5-0 record. The Americans looked dominant at times, flexing their muscles in convincing wins over Canada (with a roster loaded with NBA talent) and Serbia (where Nikola Jokic) stars.
They had built a 25-point lead against Australia (a bunch more NBA players on that roster), and then struggled in the last two games against South Sudan and Germany.
What was learned, if anything, over those last two games is that, for one, the Olympic tournament will not be easy for Team USA, regardless of the star power? And secondly, James wants the smoke.
