The losses aren’t really all that stunning for Chicago Bulls star shooting guard Zach LaVine, head coach Gregg Popovich, and the United States anymore. Team USA looked pretty bad to close out the game once again in the opener in the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, on the morning of July 25.
LaVine and Team USA took on the duo of Utah Jazz star center Rudy Gobert, Boston Celtics scoring guard/wing Evan Fournier, and France on the morning of July 25. But the desired outcome was not what was delivered for the United States to start off pool play this weekend.
And you could argue that LaVine was one of the few positive players in this game for the United States. He didn’t get a very high volume of shots, but he was efficient when he tried from the field. LaVine finished up this game against France with eight points, two rebounds, three assists, no steals, no blocks, and one turnover.
LaVine shot 3-of-6 from the field, 2-of-4 from beyond the arc, and didn’t have any attempts from the free-throw line.
Out of the six players for the United States in this loss to France that had at least one attempt from beyond the arc, LaVine was the only one that shot at least 50 percent from the field and 50 percent from beyond the arc. Superstars Kevin Durant and Damian Lillard came out very flat in this game, shooting a combined 7-of-22 from the field and 4-of-15 from beyond the arc.
Chicago Bulls’ star Zach LaVine and Team USA can’t get past France
Meanwhile, France got a big effort out of Fournier in this game, helping lead his team to the 83-76 victory. He registered a game-high 28 points, four rebounds, one assist, and one steal. Fournier helped to get France off and running to what would be a dominant second half for their side.
Following this seven-point loss to France, the United States’ chances to make the run for Gold in the Summer Olympics in Tokyo are starting to look slim. Team USA clearly has some issues to work out right now, and not much time to get that done.
The United States needs to find a better rhythm shooting from the field, and the biggest stars on this team just need to rise to the occasion. The rest of the pool for Team USA doesn’t look all that bad, but nothing came easy for this side since the start of the pre-Olympic exhibition circuit.
LaVine was solid for the United States in this game, but he’ll need some help from the likes of Lillard, KD, Phoenix Suns star guard Devin Booker, etc. Team USA as a whole is looking really bad compared to expectations in the past few weeks.
Next up for LaVine and Team USA in Japan in the Olympics is a meeting with Iran at Saitama Super Arena on July 28. The United States absolutely needs a win in that game. Tip-off time between Team USA and Iran is set for July 28 at 11:40 a.m. CT.