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Reuters

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Reuters

Team USA suffered their first loss since the 2004 Olympics as they lost to France in their Olympic opener. Prior to this loss, Team USA had a perfect record through the last 3 Olympics and had won the gold medal. However, this year they seem to be vulnerable.

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This is USA’s third loss in their last 6 international games. Even after having a team full of NBA stars, they have not delivered up to mark. Draymond Green spoke about how they can improve their game after a shocking loss to France.

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Draymond Green says USA needs to play better

Following their loss to France, Warriors’ Draymond Green addressed how USA can improve. He said that they cannot slow down their offense and need to pick up their defense as well. To sum it up, they just need to play better basketball.

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Green said, “Just gotta play better, we oughta be better on offense, and when we have a lead, we can’t slow down on offense either, we gotta continue to do the same things that got us the lead and pick our defense up even another notch,”

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Team USA had the upper hand till the crucial last minutes of the game. However, France pulled off an inspiring comeback, going on a 14-0 run in the 4th quarter to defeat USA 83-76. Green added 2 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals.

USA’s late-game struggles were shocking to see as Kevin Durant shot 0-6 in the last quarter. They were missing wide-open shots and had multiple opportunities to keep command of the game. But France’s Evan Fournier’s 28 point masterclass took the French over the line.

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Can Team USA come back?

USA will now play Iran on Tuesday in their second game. Iran is also coming off an 84-78 loss to the Czech Republic in their opening game. Both USA and Iran will look to get their first win of these Olympics on Tuesday.

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Team USA is definitely better on paper. However, there are noticeable holes in their squad. They are lacking a serious play-making guard in their lineup. Most players are used to making their own offense as opposed to setting up others and making it a team game. Green and Jrue Holiday are the notable players who are more playmakers than scorers in USA.

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On the other hand, Iran is no easy team either. They have won the last 3 of the five FIBA Asia Championship tournaments. Led by former NBA player, Hamed Haddadi, Iran will not back down to USA in any way.

With both teams desperate for a win, who do you think will come out on top?

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Written by

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Anuj Talwalkar

4,479 Articles

Anuj Talwalkar is a senior NBA Newsbreak specialist at EssentiallySports, trusted for his real-time coverage and fast, accurate updates on league developments. With five NBA seasons and two Olympics coverages under his belt, Anuj stands out as the go-to reporter for the NBA Matchday Newsdesk. As part of the EssentiallySports Journalistic Excellence Program, he continuously refines his hard reporting with grounded storytelling shaped by fan culture and court-level insights. An economics graduate and lifelong OKC fan since the Supersonics era, Anuj combines analytical thinking and a genuine passion for basketball. He’s recognized for both his live news coverage and feature writing, with aspirations to someday interview Russell Westbrook. Anuj’s reporting is marked by its reliability, depth, and strong connection to the pulse of the NBA.

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