How to watch Team USA vs. Serbia in 2024 Paris Olympics men’s basketball

The U.S. squares off against Nikola Jokic and Serbia to tip off Group B play

Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

Team USA begins its quest for a fifth consecutive Olympic gold medal on Sunday when it takes on three-time MVP Nikola Jokic and Serbia.

The Americans thwarted the Serbs in a 105-79 exhibition win last week, as Steph Curry led all scorers with 24 points and six of his team’s 16 made 3-pointers.

Still, Serbia will give Team USA its stiffest competition in Group C play. They’re coming off a silver medal finish at the World Cup last summer in which they beat Canada in the semifinals and lost by six to Germany in the final, all without its best player in Jokic. The roster isn’t riddled with NBA talent, though Bogdan Bogdanovic and Vasilije Micic are solid counterparts to Jokic as outside shooters. Serbia will also get a boost from Nikola Jovic, who’s set to join the team after injuring his ankle in an offseason workout in Miami.

Former Gonzaga men's basketball standout Filip Petrusev played a key role in Serbia’s Olympic exhibition tour. He started all five tune-ups and averaged 13.0 points and 4.0 rebounds. The highlight: 15 points and eight rebounds in a 22-point Serbia win over Giannis Antetokounmpo and Greece.

Gonzaga coach Mark Few, who doesn’t even like to schedule games against his old assistant coaches in college, has a similar sentiment about facing his former players as an assistant coach with USA Basketball. Few described last summer’s run-in with Kelly Olynyk and Canada in the FIBA World Cup bronze medal game as weird, since he found himself rooting for and against his former player at the same time.

The future hall-of-fame coach will probably face conflicted feelings again when the U.S. and Serbia square off in a highly-anticipated matchup between likely medalists.

HOW TO WATCH TEAM USA VS. SERBIA:

What: Team USA takes on Serbia in the preliminary round of Olympic men’s basketball
When: 11:15 a.m ET/ 8:15 a.m. PT on Sunday, July 28
Where: Pierre Mauroy Stadium | Villeneuve-d’Ascq
Live stream: Watch the 2024 Olympics live on Peacock
Betting odds per SI Sportsbook: USA -12.5 (-110); O/U 182.5 (-110)

ROSTERS:

Team USA
* LeBron James
* Stephen Curry
* Kevin Durant
* Joel Embiid
* Devin Booker
* Jayson Tatum
* Anthony Davis
* Tyrese Haliburton
* Anthony Edwards
* Jrue Holiday
* Bam Adebayo
* Derrick White

Team Serbia
* Bogdan Bogdanovic
* Nikola Jokic
* Nikola Milutinov
* Vasilije Micic
* Nikola Jovic
* Ognjen Dobric
* Vanja Marinkovic
* Marko Guduric
* Filip Petrusev
* Aleksa Avramovic
* Dejan Davidovac
* Uros Plavsic