LeBron James became the third American player to break the 300-point barrier at the Olympics with his 12-point performance in their win over South Sudan. James ignored the accomplishment, emphasizing the importance of ignoring stats and staying committed to doing whatever is needed to win the Gold medal.
“Oh, not much. At the end of the day, I just want to win. I’m here to win the Gold and that’s my only mindset. It’s not about scoring, it’s not about any of the stats, all the stats that pretty much don’t show up, you know, closing out, you know, getting, you know, hockey assists if possible, just stopping guys from crashing the glass. It’s an honor any time you hear your name in any type of record book, but at the end of the day, I’m here for a bigger picture.”
LeBron’s commitment to winning basketball for Team USA was evident in this game, as he played his role within the team’s larger structure and enhanced the play of more productive offensive players on the night. Nonetheless, James put up 14 points (5-9 FG), with seven rebounds and five assists.
James doesn’t feature close to the top-10 of all-time Olympic scorers after breaking the 300-point barrier, but his five assists in the contest helped him climb to No. 5 all-time in assists with 102. He overtook his former Cavaliers teammate Matthew Dellavedova to climb to No. 5 and currently trails Manu Ginobili by five for the fourth position.
LeBron James On Team USA’s Lineup Changes
LeBron was asked about coach Steve Kerr making dramatic changes to the lineup over the first two games. The USA didn’t play Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton in their win over Serbia, while Joel Embiid played 0 minutes in their win over South Sudan. James ignored the speculation and put his faith in the staff to do what was needed to optimize the best results.
“We know that’s part of what the coaching staff may do throughout the course of the tournament. So, you know, we know it could be anybody’s number any given night, and it’s not about who starts, it’s not even about who finishes, it’s about when you’re in the game, you know, the minutes that you play, you play at a high level, and I think everybody did that in the minutes they played tonight.”
James added that the USA is in a unique position depth-wise to have 12 players who could easily play big minutes and contribute to wins.
“It’s great. I mean, you know, we’ve got 12 guys that can go out and get the job done, you know, any given night. And, you know, our second lineup came in and did that tonight for us. Defensively, that’s where it started, and then offensively, they were great as well.”
Team USA’s next game against Puerto Rico could be inconsequential, as the USA has secured their spot in the next round while Puerto Rico has already been eliminated. This might be a chance to give the veterans more rest ahead of the elimination rounds, which may result in bench players getting a bigger opportunity.
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