In Paris
South Sudan may have lost their second Group ‘C’ match of the Paris Olympic Games to the might of defending champions USA on Wednesday, but the young African nation certainly made a major statement about the potential of the game on the continent.
USA, powered by mega stars from the NBA league, prevailed 103-86, but the victory at Lille’s Pierre Mauroy stadium was hard-fought.
The US “Dream Team” has been treated like royalty since they arrived in the Northern France city of Lille, exclusively taking up an entire five-star hotel along with the US’s women’s national team.
Preliminary round matches of the basketball tournament are being played in Lille, with the knockout stages programmed for the capital, Paris.
At the media mixed zone, the NBA stars are closely guarded and designated players given specific, highly-secured areas to field journalists’ questions.
On Wednesday, four-time NBA winners LeBron James (LA Lakers) and Steph Curry (Golden State Warriors) had their media corners alongside Kevin Durant (Phoenix Suns), Bam Adebayor (Miami Heat), Derrick White (Boston Celtics) and head coach Steve Kerr.
Bul Kuol of South Sudan celebrates. Evelyn Hockstein
Photo credit: Evelyn Hockstein | Reuters
Coach Kerr had to make tactical changes while Curry managed just three points to show for his 21 minutes on the court, sinking just one of nine field goals and topping up with a free throw.
The South Sudanese may have stirred the hornet’s nest when they drove the Americans close before falling by just a point - 101-100 - in a pre-Olympics practice match in London, something the African side coach Royal Terrance Ivey is cognizant of.
“They came out and they were physical,” Ivey reflected courtside on Wednesday night.
“I told my guys ‘these guys are gonna have their antennas up’… they were physical and we got off to a bad start… at the end of the day when you get off to a bad start against a good team and they have a cushion, it’s hard to get back into the game.
“But my guys never laid down. We cut the lead to 11 in the second half. They kept on fighting but we couldn’t close that gap.”
Perhaps responding to huge boos from the from the French crowd, US coach Kerr opted not to play Philadelphia 76ers centre Joel Embiid.
The Cameroonian-American had taken up French citizenship in 2022 and locals hoped he would turn up for ‘Les Bleus’ at these Olympics, but he settled for the stars and stripes.
His every step has been met with disapproval by the unforgiving home crowd at these Games, but Kerr said his decision to rest Embiid was informed by South Sudan’s style of play.
“They decided not to play Embiid, but then you’ve got Kevin Durant and other different guys you can go to, so it worked for them.”
Ivey drew some positives from the game in which the Americans were near flawless in every department, taking crucial steals and cashing in on turnovers from the African stars with Adebayo and “King James” exciting the crowd with some slam dunks.
“We kept Steph Curry to three points, Jayson Tatum to four points, and these are the best players in the NBA… but at the end of the day it still wasn’t good enough. Usually when you do that, you win games.”
Ivey paid tribute to USA’s top scorer, Miami Heat centre Bam Adebayo, who top-scored for USA with 18 points, but marvelled at the embarrassment of talent his opposite number coach Kerr had at his disposal.
“He (Adebayo) had a couple of three-pointers, Derrick white also hit a couple of threes, (Tyrese) Haliburton came in and hit a couple of threes – that’s the difference… that’s 15 points right there, and we lost by 17,” Ivey reflected, noting that the close shave in London triggered the Americans come in better prepared.
“In London, they were not prepared for us. So we knocked them in the chin and almost got a knockout.
“But this time they were prepared, and they were ready for the punches we threw and they blocked them…. We got knocked down but we kept getting up and kept fighting.
US skipper Curry also paid tribute to South Sudan, describing their style of play as difficult to challenge due to their physical abilities.
“They are talented and they have a certain style that challenges you because they have athletic guys across the board – they are a talented team that any given night they can beat anybody,” Curry observed.
South Sudan: Jones Carlik, Omot Nuni, Maluach Khaman, Kuol Bul, Kuany Kuany (captain), Gabriel Wenyen, Thor Jt, Shayok Marial, Makoi Jackson, Deng Majok, Jok Peter, Dech Sunday;
USA : Steph Curry (captain), Anthony Edwards, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Derrick White, Tyrese Haliburton, Jayson Tatum, Joel Embiid, Jrue Holiday, Bam Adebayo, Anthony Davis and Devin Booker.
