Four years before representing the United States this summer -ol in 2024, several members of this team – LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Jayson Tatum, Joel Embiid and Bam Adebayo participated in the knee under National Anthem to protest against racial injustice; Stephen Curry participated in 2021 hours after the capital.
When they did, there were calls that the two did not respect a country that they did not actually want to be part of. However, representing the stars and stripes on the biggest scene seems to say otherwise.
James and Davis’ search for a gold medal this last summer was shown in a new Netflix documentary, entitled “Court of Gold” that followed the American, French, Serbian and Canadian national teams in Paris.
The six-part document was released last week.
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LeBron James with medal and kneeling to the national anthem. (IMagn)
Director Jake Rogal said he never discussed politics with any of the players, but he was definitely able to tell you that they did not take represented their country for granted, despite questions they may have had with it in the past.
“I think you’re proud of where you’re from, even if you’re not happy with how things are,” Rogal said in a recent interview with Pakinomist Digital. “I think we’re in a polarizing, storming environment. And I think that whatever, whether you like it or not, this is where you are from and you will put your best foot forward to represent it.”
It seems that most American-born NBA players prefer the league titles rather than gold medals, but at the moment it certainly looked to tell. In crunch time, especially in the semi -finals and the final, someone could easily see how important these games were.
However, Rogal said the players find it impossible to compare the two phenomena.
“I don’t know if they compare them because we asked a question that is the same, and the answer we came back pretty consistently was that they are two different experiences so you can’t compare them,” Rogal said. “The NBA championship is a whole season and you build up for it and it’s your job. The Olympics are for your country and it’s a quick hit and it’s like, even if it’s the same sport, it’s two different results … I don’t think they’re comparable. I think they’re both special in their own right for their own reasons.”
The United States Guard Kevin Durant, #7, Guard LeBron James, #6, and shooting guard Stephen Curry, #4, celebrating after the game against Serbia in a men’s basketball semi -final game during Paris 2024 Olympic summer matches at Accor Arena. (Rob Schumacher-usa Today Sports)
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The Olympics were far from, for example, the All-Star break. The final minutes of the gold medal game when Stephen Curry turned it on and carried the Americans to the gold, topped with 22.7 million viewers. It was the most viewed gold medal since 1996; However, this year’s All-Star game was the second lowest classified since the turn of the century with an average of only 4.7 million viewers.
The NBA festivities were trumped by the NHL’s 4 National Tournament as over 9 million took the US-Canada final (although matches and political tensions certainly played roles).
However, given the feelings of these former Olympics, however, Rogal feels that NBA players would be all to follow the NHL’s footsteps by introducing an international tournament to the All-Star break.
The United States Shooting Guard Stephen Curry, #4, and Guard LeBron James, #6, celebrate after defeating France in the Lord’s basketball gold medal in Paris 2024 Olympic summer matches at Accor Arena. (Rob Schumacher-usa Today Sports)
“I think, at any time you include country, raising the effort. It makes things more appealing. It adds feelings right away. It adds competitiveness,” Rogal said. “So I think that getting a national competition in the mixture at any time is smart. Whether it’s in an all-star game or at an Olympics, I think you would get a more competitive answer if you add country to it because it’s so personal. I think it could be appealing to them.”
