Team USA strikes gold with the all-time trio of James, Durant, and Curry 

When USA Basketball started assembling their team in January of this year, big names were all over the roster. NBA All-Stars, champions, and MVPs were everywhere to be found. 12 of basketball’s best stars would be representing the United States in the Paris Olympics. However, the three headliners were the three players that have defined the last two decades of basketball: LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant.

With the US coming off a disappointing showing at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, where they finished fourth and saw Germany become the world champions, USA Basketball knew they had to recruit more star power and reclaim the throne as the best in the world. James, Durant, and Curry were committed from the start and saw the 2024 Paris games as a “last dance” of sorts.

USA Basketball: James, Durant, and Curry were the trio the US needed

James, Durant, and Curry have almost nothing to prove as basketball players. Their legacies are sealed as three of the greatest players to ever play the game. They have won a combined ten championships, seven MVPs, seven Finals MVPs, and more. 

There is no denying though that the three stars are older now. James is 39, Curry is 36, and Durant is 35. Even USA Basketball Director Grant Hill had questions about whether or not this team could compete given the age of their stars and how much more competitive FIBA basketball has gotten.

In addition to that, the team had other stars that were in their prime or ascending young players like Anthony Edwards, Anthony Davis, Jayson Tatum, Devin Booker, and Bam Adebayo. Would Team USA be led by them or the old guard? After a fifth straight gold medal, the answer was clear.

Whenever things got tight, whether it was the 17-point deficit against Serbia or a tight fourth quarter against the host country France in the gold medal game, the US leaned on the three generational talents that have dominated the sport for two decades. 

James came down the lane like a locomotive and slammed the ball through the hoop with the force of a 25-year-old. Durant crossing over from right to left and rising up for his patented jumpshot. Curry getting so hot from three-point range that you could see the flames on the ball. There was zero doubt about who the alphas of the team were at the end of the Olympics.

The Olympic Big Three may be done winning championships in the NBA, but on the world’s biggest stage one thing was clear: this was the most talented trio we have ever seen on a basketball court together. When their country needed them, they stepped up and carried it on their backs and to another gold medal.

Given all the headlines from this team, the one constant was the play of their three stars and how much they meant to the squad. They did what all-time greats do: step up in the biggest moments and win. 

We will likely never see James, Durant, and Curry ever play on the same team again, let alone in another Olympics. Father Time will eventually catch up to them and they will hang up their jerseys soon. But, if this was truly their last dance with the “Avengers”, then what an endgame it was.