Examining The 2024 Team USA Basketball Roster (Part 2)
Part one looked at what could likely be the starting five for Team USA basketball as they prepare for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Here is a look at the remaining seven Olympians representing the United States.
Anthony Edwards
Prior Team USA Experience: 2023 USA Men’s National Team (FIBA)
Anthony Edwards continued his ascent toward superstardom with an electric postseason which ended following the Western Conference Finals. Edwards played great against the defending champion Nuggets in the round before. For a moment it looked like he could be on his way to a Finals berth at the ripe age of 22.
Edwards has the offensive tools necessary to put opposing teams into a tailspin. His first step is so quick that it allows him the half-second he needs to blow by defenders on the way to the hoop for an electric throwdown.
He is an improved shooter and will hit multiple three-pointers in a game if defenses sag off him and choose to pack the paint with defenders. Edwards is one of the top young defenders in the game as well, all signs point to him having a great summer with Team USA.
Tyrese Haliburton
Prior Team USA Experience: 2023 USA Men's National Team (FIBA)
Tyrese Haliburton is still growing as a player having just finished his fifth NBA season, but he has already established himself as one of the league’s best offensive creators. He led his Indiana Pacers to an Eastern Conference Finals berth this past postseason and had the most assists during the 2023-24 NBA season, over MVP candidates such as Nikola Jokić and Luka Dončić.
As talented a squad as Team USA is, it’s good to have versatility on any roster. Haliburton is a pure point guard who will get the ball out of his hands in an instant to find the open man. He is also more than capable of knocking down outside shots, having hit just under 40% from deep last season for the Pacers. If there’s one area where Haliburton could be exploited it would be his defense. Opposing teams may try to attack him on offense.
Bam Adebayo
Prior Team USA Experience: 2020 Olympic Gold (Tokyo)
Bam Adebayo has proven to be a great fit for Team USA in the past and is a key cog for his Miami Heat on both sides of the ball. Standing at 6’9”, he is the ideal small-ball center in today’s NBA because he is still a physical specimen and a workhorse under and around the basket.
Adebayo is also capable of playing all five positions on defense as he is athletic enough to stay with guards trying to exploit the mismatch. There really is no weakness to his game. Bam is a capable midrange shooter but has not regularly incorporated three-pointers into his offensive diet yet. His well-rounded game will be a big reason why Team USA takes home the gold this summer.
Jrue Holiday
Prior Team USA Experience: 2020 Olympic Gold (Tokyo)
It is clear that Jrue Holiday knows a thing or two about winning at the highest level. After winning an NBA title with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021, he immediately joined his Team USA teammates in helping capture a gold medal. Head coach Steve Kerr hopes this summer yields the same results for Team USA as Holiday enters camp as a 2x NBA champion after the Celtics defeated the Mavericks in the Finals.
Holiday, even at 34, is widely considered to be one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA. He is a six-time All-Defensive Team selection over his 15-year NBA career, including three First-Team selections. He seems to make all the little plays on offense; tipping out offensive rebounds to teammates, setting screens, and hitting threes. Holiday is still a force to be reckoned with.
Derrick White
Prior Team USA Experience: 2019 USA Men's National Team (FIBA)
The other half of the best defensive backcourt in the league for the Celtics, Derrick White has been selected to replace Kawhi Leonard on the Team USA roster. White is an ideal candidate because this team wasn’t loaded with defensive guards, Jrue Holiday and Anthony Edwards being the standouts.
White will reinforce this group with his active hands and unworldly shot-blocking ability for a guard. He led the NBA in blocks by the guard position and is just the 5th player in NBA history under 6’5” to log 75+ blocks in a season (He finished the season with 87. The other 4 on the list; Ron Brewer, Dennis Johnson, David Thompson, Dwyane Wade).
Derrick White is also one of the best three-point shooters in the league as he has hovered around 39% from deep over the past two seasons in Boston and can run the pick-and-roll for this team as well. He's a great fit for this team.
Anthony Davis
Prior Team USA Experience: 2012 Olympic Gold, 2014 USA World Cup
Anthony Davis is another one of those prototypical two-way players that head coach Steve Kerr and Team USA love to have on their roster. Standing at 6’10” AD is one of the NBA’s best shot blockers, finishing 4th in 2023-24 in the category with 178 rejections.
He is also one of the most tenacious rebounders in the game and finished 4th in the NBA in that category as well. Getting extra possessions will be key for Davis and Team USA to flex their strength in their upcoming run. Assuming Embiid gets the starting nod and AD comes off the bench, Davis needs to bring the energy to the reserve unit with his scoring, lob finishing on offense and his stellar defensive abilities.
Devin Booker
Prior Team USA Experience: 2020 Olympic Gold (Tokyo), 2018-20 Men’s National Team (FIBA)
Booker is one of five players returning from the 2020 Olympics where the USA captured a fourth-straight Olympic gold medal in Tokyo, rejoining Durant, Tatum, Holiday, and Adebayo.
Booker is about as polished an offensive weapon as there is, acting as the hub of the Phoenix Suns offense since 2011, when he was drafted 13th overall, at just 18 years of age.
He is a true three-level scorer, able to knock down outside shots, operate in the mid-range, and get downhill to the basket. He can operate with the ball in his hands and execute the offense for others or he can play off-ball. Booker will thrive with his Olympic teammates and will have stretches where he carries the offense for Team USA.
