LeBron James and Stephen Curry are the two faces of Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics as two of the three most tenured stars alongside Kevin Durant. Managing director of USAB Grant Hill told former Team USA coach Mike Krzyzewski that James and Curry serve as the unofficial captains of this year’s Olympic team.
“I’d say [LeBron James and Stephen Curry] are the two unofficial captains. The conditioning, the professionalism, the energy that you talked about, they have been absolutely fantastic. And I will say, we know their legacy, we know what they’ve done throughout their careers, and the fact that at this point they still want to come back, it speaks about their experience playing about USA Basketball overall.”
Hill stressed upon the importance of USA Basketball in shaping young players into champions, using James and Curry as an example for what young stars like Anthony Edwards could achieve.
“For both of them, they were a part of USA Basketball before they became NBA Champions. It gave them a foundation, it taught them how to win, it taught them how to be a part of something bigger than themselves. LeBron understands and cherishes that, and Steph as well. LeBron and I have talked about that, the impact this can have on Anthony Edwards and some of the young guys the same way Kobe and Jason Kidd did for LeBron in 2008.”
"I'd say [LeBron and Steph are] the two unofficial captains"
Grant Hill has marveled at what LeBron James and Steph Curry are bringing to Team USA
Hear our Town Hall hosted by Coach K featuring Grant Hill today at 5:00 PM/ET on @SiriusXM Channel 86! https://t.co/iiUuqRLHYL pic.twitter.com/QBAEdwy4XN
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) July 11, 2024
This team clearly had a three-headed monster at the top with James, Curry, and Kevin Durant. Everyone knows Durant’s preference is to focus on hooping, so naturally James and Curry were elevated into a more active leadership role.
Durant’s presence is motivating stars like Anthony Edwards to push harder, but James and Curry are generation-defining names.
LeBron James And Stephen Curry Strengthening Their Relationship
LeBron James and Stephen Curry competed against each other in four consecutive NBA Finals. While Curry won the battle 3-1, James ended the Warriors’ chance of being called the greatest team in history when he willed the Cavaliers to a 3-1 comeback in the 2016 NBA Finals to ruin GSW’s 73-9 season.
The pair had clear bad blood based on their competitive rivalry on the court, but the feelings have changed over the years as the two aren’t competing for titles anymore.
They are loving the experience of playing with each other on Team USA, with James commenting on the same after USA’s 86-72 win over Canada.
“Just two guys who love to play the game of basketball and we try to share it with each other. I missed him in the first half on a wide-open three that I threw out of bounds, but he was able to connect with me for the lob. It’s fun. We play the game at a high level but more importantly, we play the game that we love the right way, and that’s the result of it.”
Their love for basketball is infectious and should motivate the most expensive basketball team ever put together to dominate at the Paris Olympics.
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