Damian Lillard theorized why Team USA is struggling in such an embarrassing fashion, following their loss to France in the team’s first official game of the Tokyo Olympics. The Portland Trail Blazers star says foreign players step up their game when competing on the international level and that they’re given more freedom at the Olympics.
“And you know who we see each night sometimes in the NBA, they are completely different when they play for their countries,” Lillard said. “They got more freedom, and the comfort level is obvious. So we put ourselves in a dogfight, and they made plays to win it.”
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Lillard was likely referring to Evan Fournier who, while is a respectable NBA player, dropped 28 on Team USA, Sunday, outperforming everyone on the court. He even hit a go-ahead three-pointer in the final quarter.
In addition to Fournier, France has four more NBA players on their roster including Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert, New York Knicks guard Frank Nilikina, Los Angeles Clippers forward Nicolas Batum, and Brooklyn Nets guard Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot.
On the other hand, Team USA boasts stars such as Kevin Durant, Bam Adebayo, Devin Booker, and more. The team is also coached by Spurs legend Gregg Popovich.
[Via]