Without its’s veteran All-Stars, Team USA will be a totally different roster by the time the 2028 Olympics in LA roll around.
Two players that may be able to fill that void are Zion Williamson and Ja Morant.
Although both have had their various issues, including devastating injuries and off-court proclivities towards porn stars and guns, they are both outright superstars when they are healthy (and focussed of course).
One USA Basketball source believes the pair will key in the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
“We will still have a great chance to win gold, but it won’t be easy,” one USA Basketball source said, per The Athletic. “Ja and Zion need to be in the mix. Moving forward, hopefully they can get on track and stay on track.”
Team USA won gold in an epic conquest over the summer, in a team that featured Kevin Durant, Steph Curry and LeBron James playing on the same side for the first time ever.
It was every NBA fans dream, although the 12-man roster was definitely not welcoming of any newer NBA talent.
The next Olympics will certainly be a different story though.
“If they (Team USA) would have called, you know, I would definitely have picked up, but I guess it wasn’t my time, which is OK,” Williamson said. “They went and went out there and brought gold home, which was great for the country. Hopefully in 2028, I’ll be ready.”
Both Zion and Ja have showed promise in their initial pre-season games with the Pels and Grizzlies respectively.
If they can both stay fit and have a solid few seasons leading up to the Olympics, we might just see them lead the country to gold.