Los Angeles Lakers superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis helped Team USA capture gold in the 2024 Paris Olympics, leading the squad to a win over France, 98-87, on Saturday.
With the win, James earned his third Olympic gold medal while Davis earned his second, leading to plenty of reactions on social media from the Lakers faithful.
LEBRON JAMES: 3x GOLD MEDALIST
ANTHONY DAVIS: 2x GOLD MEDALIST
🥇🟣🟡 pic.twitter.com/IUXt4wEous
— The Laker Files (@LakerFiles) August 10, 2024
LeBron James. Three-time Olympic Gold Medalist.
Anthony Davis. Two-time Olympic Gold Medalist.
This duo is still worth investing in. pic.twitter.com/QD5LgFcdlm
— Tristan (@TBeckmann24) August 10, 2024
Don't necessarily want to say it's more important than the gold medal, but just as important is that LeBron and AD made it through this Olympic run healthy. The next time we will see them on the floor is when the Lakers open up the preseason on Oct. 4.
— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) August 10, 2024
One fan declared that James and Davis “can still do it,” potentially referring to the two stars being able to lead the Lakers to an NBA title.
LeBron & AD can still do it. It's still in there.
— Raj C. (@RajChipalu) August 10, 2024
James and Davis led the Lakers to a title in the 2019-20 season, but Los Angeles has been past the first round just one time since, making the Western Conference Finals in the 2022-23 season.
Lakers Daily’s Anthony Irwin gave his thoughts on the state of the Lakers after watching James and Davis in the closing lineup of Saturday’s gold medal matchup.
The Lakers really have two of the closing five of one of the most talented teams ever and can’t figure out a way to be title relevant. Man.
— Anthony F. Irwin (@AnthonyIrwinLA) August 10, 2024
Some more reactions trickled in after James was named the MVP of the tournament.
BREAKING: LeBron James wins MVP for Team USA pic.twitter.com/gILBUBoxh7
— Lakers Daily (@LakersDailyCom) August 10, 2024
BREAKING: LEBRON HAS WON OLYMPIC MVP pic.twitter.com/VJCWDRDZaK
— Lakers Lead (@LakersLead) August 10, 2024
👑 4x Regular Season MVP
👑 4x Finals MVP
👑 3x All-Star Game MVP
👑 IST MVP
👑 and now OLYMPIC MVPLeBron James has conquered basketball 🐐 pic.twitter.com/hQb3oi6DCl
— Lakers Lead (@LakersLead) August 10, 2024
LEBRON JAMES IS YOUR 2024 OLYMPICS MVP 🤯
THE KING STILL RULES THE WORLD. 👑 pic.twitter.com/yED7t5VkWq
— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) August 10, 2024
Hopefully, the Lakers can make the necessary tweaks to their roster to compete for a title in the 2024-25 season. It’s also possible that the decision to hire J.J. Redick as the franchise’s next head coach will raise the Lakers’ ceiling in the 2024-25 campaign.
Redick will bring a fresh perspective to a Lakers roster that is hoping to remain healthy after two key players – Gabe Vincent and Jarred Vanderbilt – missed most of the 2023-24 campaign.
In Saturday’s win over France, James played over 32 minutes, scoring 14 points while adding six rebounds and 10 assists. It was a great performance after he turned in a triple-double in Team USA’s semifinal win over Serbia.
Davis came off the bench for Team USA on Saturday and finished with eight points, nine rebounds, one assist, two steals and four blocks. An elite defensive big man, Davis played more minutes than Joel Embiid and Bam Adebayo in the gold medal matchup.
While James and Davis won’t have a supporting cast around them like they did on Team USA, they certainly are still good enough to lead the Lakers back to the playoffs in the 2024-25 campaign. With the Olympics over for the men’s basketball team, Lakers fans can now focus on the upcoming season.
