(Photo by Henry Browne/Getty Images)
Looking ahead to the Olympics, USA Basketball put together the ultimate roster of American NBA talent.
The best American players teamed up to bring home the gold from Paris, and judging by the roster, it was hard to envision any other team even posing somewhat of a threat to them.
Notably, it didn’t take long for that to change.
Despite being 43-point favorites, Team USA barely escaped their matchup vs. South Sudan with a win, beating them 101-100 thanks to a game-winning layup by LeBron James.
Needless to say, this would’ve been one of the biggest upsets in USA Basketball history, and while they still managed to get the win, oddsmakers didn’t like what they saw; not one bit.
That’s why it’s not much of a surprise to see a major shift in their odds to win the gold medal.
As shown by ESPN BET on Twitter, Team USA’s odds went from -600 to -375 after the game, with South Sudan’s odds going from 1000-1 to 100-1.
There was a big shift in gold medal odds after South Sudan nearly upset USA pic.twitter.com/mB2ubPfra2
— ESPN BET (@ESPNBet) July 21, 2024
Of course, they’re still the obvious candidate and front-runner, and South Sudan is still considered a long shot to get the gold, but this was a significant shift nonetheless.
South Sudan’s path and history up to this point are remarkable and more than Hollywood-worthy, and we can’t take anything away from them.
We’re talking about a nation without a single indoor basketball court making it to the Olympics and almost beating Team USA.
As for the Americans, they will need to take a different approach for when it actually counts, as the level of competition is only going to get tougher.
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