Team Canada Still Reeling From Not Landing a Medal at 2024 Olympics

Courtney Tate | Dec 23, 2024

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It’s been a few months now since the closing ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics, but Team Canada’s men’s basketball team is still feeling the sting of leaving without a medal.

Team Canada entered the Summer Olympics a favorite to medal, as they feature NBA stars like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, RJ Barrett, and Jamal Murray. For the first year in nearly a decade, Canada’s men’s basketball team looked promising headed into the group stage of the Paris Olympics.

Team Canada lived up to the hype in the group stage, going a perfect 3-0 in statement wins against Greece, Australia, and Spain.

Canada opened their Olympic campaign against Giannis Antetokounmpo’s home team and came out victorious with a score of 86-79. This marked the first Olympic win for Canada since 2000. Barrett shined in this matchup scoring 23 points while Gilgeous-Alexander came in right behind him with 21 points.

RJ Barrett continued leading the charge in Canada’s second statement win against Australia. Canada deafeated Team Australia by a score of 93-83. Barrett finished the game with 24 points while Dillion Brooks had a breakout game adding in 16 points.

Finally, Team Canada secured their spot in the quarterfinals with a nail-biting matchup against Spain, defeating them by a narrow score of 88-85. Spain was the defending World Champions, and many did not have Canada pulling out the victory.

The only team that stood in the way of Team Canada and their first Olympic medal since 1936 was Victor Wembanyama and a formidable French team. Canada got off to a slow start, trailing by 13 points, ultimately creating too large of a gap to stage a comeback.

What’s even more upsetting for Team Canada is the fact that they ultimately contained Wembanyama, holding him to just 7 points. Canada also held France’s most experienced player Nick Batum scoreless throughout the matchup.

Commentators and fans made a note of the team’s lack of urgency and execution in the early periods of the game, resulting in an uphill battle down the stretch.

Canada players are still fuming at the outcome of the Paris Olympics.

“I’m still not over it,” Barrett says of his Olympics experience. “Every time I see Yabusele, I get pissed off.”

Many Canada fans are still hurting at the outcome viewing the results as a missed opportunity, given the incredible talent the team featured this year.

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