The revelation comes after the United States national basketball team finished without a medal in the FIBA World Cup.
Following the conclusion of the 2023 FIBA World Cup, in which Team USA finished in fourth place, LeBron James has already put a plan into motion to change things around.
According to a report by Shams Charania of ‘The Athletic,’ the forward for the Los Angeles Lakers is open to the idea of competing for the United States of America at the upcoming summer Olympics in Paris.
In contrast to the World Championships, the Olympic competition is appealing to NBA players, and LeBron James appears to be intent on competing for the gold medal once more.
In addition to this, it has been stated that he is already attempting to persuade other major talents, such as Jayson Tatum, Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, and Stephen Curry, who has never taken part in an Olympic competition, to join him.
Other prominent athletes, such as Damian Lillard, Devin Booker, De’Aaron Fox, and Kyrie Irving, have expressed interest in competing for their country at the Olympic Games in the following summer.
Since the United States sent the Dream Team to the Olympic Games in Barcelona in 1992, it has only once failed to win an Olympic gold medal. That gold was won by Argentina in Athens in 2004, and it was the only time.
LeBron James competed and ended up winning bronze. After that, he would go on to experience Olympic triumph in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012, when he was victorious against Spain both times.
Eleven years have passed since LeBron’s last appearance with the national team.
The Lakers forward did not play for the United States national team again after that game, which took place eleven years ago.
Even though he will be 39 years old by the time the Olympics roll around the following summer, there is no question about whether or not he will perform. How can some of the other stars not be in if ‘King’ James has already committed?
During the middle of the World Cup, Grant Hill, the executive director of USA Basketball and a member of the squad that won gold at the Atlanta Games in 1996, stated that a few of the players who were a part of the team will also be at the Paris Games. Hill was a member of the team that won gold at the Atlanta Games.
They are young, they are good, and they are starving. When LeBron James, Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, and Dwyane Wade participated in the World Cup in 2006, they were not quite as good of players as they would become later. He stated that currently, “we are building something.”
However, if the star players are willing to return to the team, that might potentially alter.
The final opportunity to achieve greatness
The United States team that competed in the World Cup had very few players who had previously participated in an NBA All-Star Game, and none of them had ever been selected to an All-NBA Team.
It was shocking to see how they stacked up against their “seniors,” many of whom would go on to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. The USA Basketball C (or D or E) team wasn’t up to standards, but things could change at the Olympics.
It would be the last opportunity to see some of the best players of all time compete in the Olympics, as LeBron will be 39 years old when the games begin in Paris, Curry will be 36, and Kevin Durant will be 35.
The Americans planned to make the event in Paris a star-studded party while they were there. If they do it while wearing gold around their necks, it is an added bonus.
