USA vs Serbia 2024 Olympics Preview and Game Thread: Two more wins till gold

Team USA looks to advance to the gold medal game of the 2024 Olympics with a win against a foe they’ve seen far too often this summer in Serbia.

The United States men’s basketball team will take on Nikola Jokic and Serbia in the semifinals of the 2024 Paris Olympics on Thursday. The winner advances to final for the battle for gold while the loser falls to the consolation bronze medal game.

Start time and TV schedule

Who: United States vs Serbia

When: 12 p.m. PT, Aug 9

Where: Pierre Mauroy Stadium, Villeneuve-d’Ascq, France

Watch: NBC, Peacock

For third time in the last month and a half, USA and Serbia will meet, this time, though, with higher stakes on the line. The Americans have gotten the best out of the Serbians in their last two affairs, winning by a combined 52 points. That’s why it’s not a surprise that Team USA is once again heavy favorites to win this battle.

But then again, we’ve seen crazy things happen in win-or-go-home games, similar to what happened to Canada when they were eliminated by France. That was the same day Serbia also came back from a 24-point deficit against Australia to complete the greatest comeback in Olympic basketball history. This Serbia team has proven that they’re not going to let go of the rope easily and they’ve only gotten better since they last faced the US.

Here’s how the United States can make sure that Serbia doesn’t pull off the greatest upset in Olympic basketball history:

Make Nikola Jokic’s life miserable

Jokic, who is averaging 19.3 points, 11.8 rebounds and 7.5 assists in this tournament, has been limited to 16 and 20 points in the last two games against Team USA. During the group phase game, USA wore Jokic out to the point that he looked fatigued and couldn’t buy a 3-pointer (1-6) towards the latter part of the match.

The red, white and blue have done a good job containing the NBA’s reigning MVP, who desperately needs his teammates to show up if Serbia wants any chance to win this game.

One of the biggest factors in this one will be the non-Jokic minutes, which Team USA dominated 29-3 in their last matchup. But in the 30:45 minutes that the Joker played, Serbia was able to match USA’s production. Will Jokic play the whole game this time around? Can the likes of Bogdan Bogdanovic, Ognjen Dobric and Aleksa Avramovic support the best player in the world? It’s going to be interesting to see how the Serbians manage Jokic’s minutes in this do-or-die game.

Just play Team USA basketball

The common denominator in Team USA’s two victories against Serbia is that the scoring production came from the guards and forwards. Stephen Curry had his best game of the summer against this same Serbia team, scoring 24 points on 6-9 3-point shooting...and has pretty much been quiet since, but that’s a conversation for another time.

Then, in the preliminary round, it was Kevin Durant off the bench who went 8-9 from the field and scored 23 points, along with LeBron James and Jrue Holiday who added 21 and 15 points, respectively. That’s what makes this USA team so special, their unselfishness and ability to have someone lead the scoring department every game. It’s going to be fun to see who stands out in this crucial match and, hopefully, it’s one of LeBron James or Anthony Davis again.

Contain Serbia’s adjustment

Serbia head coach Svetislav Pesic, who claimed that this USA team is the best he’s ever seen, mentioned after their most recent loss to the Americans that the Serbians should’ve never stopped moving on offense, especially when Jokic was on the bench. The 74-year-old head coach will most likely instruct his team to play more organized basketball in the semifinals.

Like most of Team USA’s opponents, Serbia has an advantage in its ability to grab offensive rebounds. They average 11.5 boards, resulting in 15.3 second-chance points per game. Serbia, which also ranks third in the tournament in turnovers per game (16), might also want to make more of an effort to protect the ball in this one because Team USA loves making its opponents pay with its lethal ability to get out in transition.

That said, Serbia will need to do a lot to beat this undefeated USA squad in the semifinals. Jokic and crew have to play near perfect basketball for that to happen. Let's see if Serbia can shock the world against Team USA on Thursday.

Notes and Updates

• LeBron James, who received four stitches after inadvertently getting elbowed on his head, is reportedly doing okay and is expected to be ready for the semifinals.
• Speaking of James, he also currently leads the 2024 Paris Olympics men’s basketball MVP ladder. If the Lakers superstar continues to lead Team USA to the mountaintop, there’s a good chance he takes home his first Olympic MVP award. Shoutout to Anthony Davis for also coming in at number nine despite not being a starter.

• Davis, who was recognized as one of the top five performers of the quarterfinals, could have a big game against Serbia if he stays out of foul trouble. Remember, AD was dominant in that first meeting against Serbia where he had six blocks.
• As for the injury report, USA’s Joel Embiid is dealing with ankle soreness but he should be ready to go for Team USA, who have a clean injury report otherwise ahead of the semifinals.
• Same goes with Serbia, who are expected to be complete in their third and final battle against the United States in the 2024 Olympics.
• We will be live on Playback for this game, so be sure to join us!

You can follow Nicole on Twitter at @nicoleganglani.