What we learned as vintage Steph fuels Team USA win vs. Jokić, Serbia originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Steph Curry made up for an unusual performance Monday with a spectacular showing in Team USA’s 105-79 thrashing of Nikola Jokić and Serbia on Wednesday in Abu Dhabi.
Curry strung together an 18-point first half, including a mind-boggling and-1 4-point play that had the Team USA bench – and the crowd at Etihad Arena — on their feet.
Curry’s hot start didn’t extend to any of his teammates until Anthony Davis checked into the game midway through the opening frame as Team USA trailed early in the first.
Davis, who led the charge for Team USA’s second unit, got going immediately, defending Jokić and scoring a handful of points to even the score at 28 after one.
The Los Angeles Lakers star center, coming off a dominant 17-point, 14-rebound double-double performance in Monday’s win against Australia, continued to stay hot Wednesday — but his dominance came on the defensive end of the floor, fulfilling the difficult task of guarding Jokić.
The Serbian big man, a typically efficient shooter, finished with 16 points on 6-of-19 (31.6 percent) shooting from the field and 0 of 4 from 3-point range, and was a game-worst minus-27 in plus/minus rating.
Bam Adebayo finished with a team-high plus-22 in plus/minus rating, collecting 17 points on 6-of-8 from the field and 3 of 4 from 3-point range, and seven rebounds.
LeBron James added 11 points and Anthony Edwards contributed 16.
Team USA now is 3-0 in its exhibition matches, with two games remaining before Group Play. And Team USA will come face-to-face with Jokić again when it opens Olympic play against Serbia in two weeks.
Here are the takeaways from Wednesday’s win:
Chef cooks early
After a rare quiet performance from Curry in Team USA’s sloppy win against Australia on Monday, the Golden State Warriors superstar was back in the kitchen two days later.
Curry finished Monday’s game with three points. Within the first 24 seconds of Wednesday’s game, he already matched that number.
The sharpshooter opened all scoring Wednesday from the region where he has been crowned king, as his first 3-point attempt was nothing but net.
The shooting continued to sizzle for Curry, who splashed another trey, knocked down a technical free throw and hit a jazzy fadeaway jumper to finish the opening quarter with nine points.
Things didn’t slow down for Curry in the second quarter, and he finished the first half with 18 points.
Curry finished the game with 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field and six made 3s.
Jokes on Joker
Jokić has been a 6-foot, 11-inch problem for just about every NBA team from late October to June.
But some of the NBA’s greatest stars couldn’t catch a break from the Serbian big man and had to deal with him and all he presents during a July exhibition game in Abu Dhabi.
But Jokić, a two-time Silver medalist with Serbia and three-time NBA MVP, was limited in portraying his unique skillset Wednesday, largely due to the 6-foot-10 defensive presence of Davis.
Particularly for players who play in the NBA’s Western Conference, and even more so for Los Angeles Lakers superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis — who have had their past two seasons end at the hands of Joker and the Denver Nuggets in the NBA playoffs — they’ve learned the hard way just how difficult it is to put a dent into anything Jokić does on the floor.
But there were flashes of vengeance on Wednesday, and even though Jokić still finished with a 16-point double-double, he appeared off-rhythm — at least compared to his capabilities — all game.
That likely won’t be the same story when he faces Team USA in a couple weeks.
AD’s block party
If fans needed any more proof that Davis is the best defender in the NBA, Wednesday’s showing left no doubt.
Even just watching one clip can assure you everything you need to know.
Davis strung together a masterpiece of a defensive performance, with a string of three consecutive blocks — two against Jokić — in less than a minute of action.
He finished the game with seven points, six rebounds and six blocks in 16 minutes off the bench, and was a plus-21 in plus/minus rating — only behind his fellow star Team USA defender Bam Adebayo.
Davis’ defensive presence alongside the Miami Heat star was a force to be reckoned with for Serbia’s offense.
The defensive duo proved to be a dominant one, and since defense can win championships, Team USA hopes it also can win them gold.
NBC Sports BayArea
