Lakers All-Stars Lead Team USA To Top Seed for Rest of Olympics

Can they claim gold yet again?

Jul 31, 2024; Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France; United States center Anthony Davis (14) celebrates with shooting guard Stephen Curry (4) in the fourth quarter against South Sudan during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Stade Pierre-Mauroy. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports / John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Team USA's group play phase in Lille, France has come to a perfect close with a dominant 104-83 win over Team Puerto Rico on Saturday. Now, the club has earned the overall No. 1 seed for the knockout play round.

No. 1 seed ✅ pic.twitter.com/z5UveWwejX

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) August 3, 2024

A pair of All-NBA Los Angeles Lakers stars, 39-year-old forward LeBron James and 31-year-old center Anthony Davis, are leading the way for the program. It's the first Olympics for either player since the 2012 games, when they won the gold medal against Pau Gasol's Team Spain. James, in particular, has been singled out for his leadership of the club by his star teammates.

Read More: Los Angeles Stars LeBron James, Anthony Davis Keep Team USA's Record Perfect vs Puerto Rico

“The leadership is there,” Phoenix Suns All-Star shooting guard Devin Booker observed, per Shaun Powell of NBA.com, “and the attention to detail is at a high level. He was vocal with us and we all followed suit.”

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid, who is controversially still starting ahead of Davis despite looking out of shape, received a shower of boos from the French crowd throughout the game. Embiid has French citizenship and was born in Cameroon, but opted to play for Team USA instead to maximize he chances of nabbing his first Olympic gold medal this summer.

“A lot of people think it’s hate,” Embiid said. “I see it as love and respect. If I wasn’t an OK basketball player, I would not receive that kind of response. I see myself as being blessed. That’s why I interacted with that crowd because I’m blessed. And I’ve seen worse (in the NBA). Nothing that I haven’t seen before.”

Embiid scored 15 points on 6-of-14 shooting from the floor (1-of-4 from deep) and 2-of-2 shooting from the foul line, while also notching three rebounds, two assists and a pair of blocks in 23 minutes.

According to Team USA head coach Steve Kerr, part of the reaason Davis drew the start over Embiid was health-related.

“He was sick before the last game and took a little step back," Kerr said. "He’s going to be important for us. As for the booing, he’s done a good job of making light of it. He knew this was coming. What I liked was after the French fans booed, the American fans would cheer.” 

More Lakers: Colin Cowherd on Team USA - 'This is LeBron's World'