Ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, Team USA assembled a roster that could surpass the original Dream Team in star power. Svetislav Pesic repeated the notion as he called Team USA the “best ever” national team to appear in a FIBA competition.
”We are playing against an exceptional team. I think it is the best team in national team’s basketball history,” the Serbian veteran coach said, per Eurohoops.net.
Pesic noted during the past month that the current team is better than the original Dream Team that appeared in the 1992 Olympics. In addition to their individual talent, Team USA has become more accustomed playing together since the start of the tournament, according to Pesic.
“From game to game, they grow as a team. We respect that, but we also respect ourselves. We are not afraid! We want to play a good game. And that’s why we stayed at the hotel today and didn’t practice.”
”We are among the four best teams, which is a huge success. But let’s move on. Because we said we came here to do our best and get that Olympic medal.
Serbia is set to play against the Team USA on Thursday night after the first semi-final clash between Germany and France. Nikola Jovic is still questionable for the game after missing the quarter-final against Australia due to injury.
Serbia has already experienced two games against star-studded USA
The Serbians had the misfortune to play against Team USA two times so far. One time in Abu Dhabi, where they lost by a big margin and one in the Olympic opener, where they finished the contest down by 26. Team USA dominated on both occasions and they will be the firm favorite to win again.
Nikola Jokic was the only bright spot for the Serbian national team in the Olympic as Serbia had a positive plus-minus with the 3-times MVP on the floor, while they were a minus-81 with the Nuggets’ superstar sitting.
In the quarter-final, Jokic was crucial during the overtime while he pushed his team to return from down 24 to beat Australia. That was the biggest comeback in Olympic history as the Serbians managed to come on top and advance to the Top-4 teams of the Paris 2024 tourney.
