The U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team isn’t afraid of a cold shooting night from one or two of its stars. Due to its depth, it can certainly overcome obstacles.
Kevin Durant (22 points) proved to be the star of stars yesterday as his pinpoint shooting allowed the U.S. to overcome some early ugliness in beating France, 98-71, in London.
LeBron James shared the ball well, dishing out eight assists for the Americans.
France was expected to be a solid test for the U.S. as it featured San Antonio Spurs point guard Tony Parker. Parker wore goggles due to the vision impairment he suffered after a much-publicized nightclub incident, which also involved musicians Drake and Chris Brown, in which shards of glass from a broken bottle fell into his left eye. Parker scored 10 points for his home country and had his team trailing by just a point after the first quarter.
Kobe Bryant scored 10 points for the U.S. and Kevin Love added 14 points in 14 minutes.
The U.S. men next play Tuesday against Tunisia at 5:15 p.m. ET.
