LeBron James Saves Team USA Again; Packers aren’t feeling the love at training camp

Happy Tuesday everyone!

Let’s get started right away.

🏀 Good morning to everyone, but especially to…

LeBRON JAMES

Monday morning, Le Bron James used to be selected as Olympic flag bearer, the first American men’s basketball player to earn this honor. Hours later he showed why. James put Team USA on his back and carried it across the finish line, scoring the team’s final 11 points in a 92–88 win about Germany. It was the United States’ last match before starting the Olympics on Sunday Serbia.

• James’ exploits came two days after he… game winning layout in return for Southern Sudan. Against Germany, James again led the Americans in scoring (20 points) while hitting 8 of 11 shots, including both of his three-pointers.
• Five other American players reached double figures, with Joel Embid He scored 15 points and added nine rebounds, his best showcase game yet.

Still, the back-to-back close games for Team USA and the need for James to close them out is concerning. The United States attempted just 17 three-pointers, with the offense often stagnant as one or two players tried to chase mismatches. The US also turned the ball over fourteen times, forced only seven turnovers and gave up fourteen offensive rebounds. As a result, Germany took twelve times more shots than the US and was almost able to gain the upper hand despite shooting only 36% compared to the United States’ 49%.

There is no doubt about the absurd talent and depth of the American roster, but there is also a lot of doubt about the fit and chemistry.

Outside Stephen Curry (WHO revealed that James would be a standard bearer), there is no one who takes a lot of catch-and-shoot 3s, which makes spacing an issue, and there are always several guys on the court who are used to being the best option for their team, which affects the rhythm and off- makes ball movement uncomfortable. On the defensive side, issues include defensive screens. Combine that with the improving international scene, and the US is in for quite a battle at the Olympics in the coming weeks. Luckily, James is still in charge and proving that even at 39 years old, that’s as good an option as any.

James Herbert has more on the performance, including why defense will be so importantand not for the reasons you might think.

👍 Honorable mentions

😅 And not such a good morning for…

JORDAN LOVE AND THE PACKERS

There’s some drama in it Packers training camp, but Green Bay isn’t worried… for now. Jordan Love will not practice with the team until he has a new dealalthough he is with the team and attends meetings.

Last year, the Packers and Love agreed to a one-year deal worth up to $22.5 million (with $13.5 million guaranteed) through 2024 in lieu of exercising his fifth-year option, and after Love’s breakout year, that seems like a genius move of Green Bay. Finally the full-time starter after falling behind Aaron Rodgers For three years, Love threw for 32 touchdowns and led the youngest playoff team since 1974 to an outstanding wild-card victory over the Cowboys.

Love’s production clearly outpaced his earnings: His average annual value of $13.5 million ranks 19th among quarterbacks and is a steep drop from Geno Smith, which is 18th, but goes all the way up at $25 million per year. For more context, Dak Prescott, Daniel Jones And Matthew Stafford are all $40 million per year, roughly three times Love’s value… and that still only ranks 12th among quarterbacks.

The good news is that Packers GM Brian Gutekunst said that while he would prefer Love to practice, he understands Love’s perspective and is optimistic that things will get done sooner rather than later as both parties want a long-term deal.

But Gutekunst also said these types of deals can take time, and a recent report said the two sides were still far from reaching an agreement. As such, Sean Clifford gets starter reps, and Love misses valuable opportunities to build his budding connection with several talented young receiving options, new star running back Jos Jacobs and a new offensive line.

It could be – and probably will be – just fine. Love will get a new deal and things will return to normal. But for a team looking to make the leap from a “promising young group” to a “legitimate Super Bowl contender,” this isn’t the ideal start to training camp.

👎 Not so honorable mentions

🏀 NBA lottery picks numbers as Summer League comes to a close

Congratulations, Heat! You are NBA champions! Well, NBA Summer League champions at least. Miami took home the Vegas crown with a 120-118 victory in extra time about the Grizzlies. Pelle Larsson made a tight turn in the track to reach the Elam Ending target score of 120. (The Elam Ending is great by the way!) Jalen Wilson Was called MVP of the summer league.

When you say to yourself, “who?” if you hear names like Pelle Larsson and Jalen Wilson, that’s okay (even if it also means you’re not a big fan of college basketball, which should change). Larsson was a 2024 second-round selection out of Arizona, and Wilson was a 2023 second-round selection out of Kansas who played a small role for the Nets as a newcomer. For many (but not all) Summer League stars, these few weeks each summer in Las Vegas are as good as it gets. Cameron Salerno took all the action and handed out numbers to each lottery pick; one earned an “A+.”

• Salerno: “Pick No. 3: Reed Sheppard, Rockets — Sheppard was statistically the best three-point shooter in this draft class, and while Vegas’ numbers weren’t great (5-of-18 shooting from distance), his shot will translate in the NBA. One of the biggest drawbacks to his play during the pre-draft process was positional size, but he made up for it with his active hands, resulting in 11 steals in four games. It’s easy to overreact after seeing players in summer league, but there are real arguments that Sheppard should have gone higher in the draft. I’m curious to see what Sheppard’s role will be with the Rockets once the season starts, but he should play significant minutes even off the bench. Either way, it looks like the Rockets have found their point guard of the future. Grade: A+“

The following players joined Sheppard in the “A” series:

• No. 4 pick Stephon Castle, Spurs: A-
• No. 7 pick Donovan Clingan, Trail Blazers: A-
• No. 8 pick Rob Dillingham, Timberwolves: A-
• No. 11 choice Matas Buzelis, Bulls: A-
• No. 14 choose Carlton Carrington (we call him “Bub”)Wizards: A

🏀 WNBA Power Rankings: Where things stand during the Olympic break

It will be nearly a month before WNBA action resumes. That means this is the perfect time to enjoy the view from 30,000 feet Jack Maloney’s power rankings, who look at the good and bad of each team. Let’s start with Jack’s top five:

1. Freedom (previous: 1)
2. Sun (3)
3. Aces (2)
4. Thunderstorm (5)
5. Lynx (4)

New York has a 2½ game lead for first place and owns the league’s highest scoring offense, the league’s highest scoring margin and a four-game winning streak. But it hasn’t all gone according to planwrites Jac.

• Maloney: “The Bad: Recent Injury Concerns — There have been few negatives in New York this season, but some of the injuries that cropped up right before the break weren’t ideal. Betnijah Laney-Hamilton underwent knee surgery and is expected back in 4-6 weeks Breanna Stewart goes to Paris with a sore hamstring.”

In some ways, though, this break comes at the perfect time for the Liberty to recover from the long run.

Speaking of the Olympics, Team USA has yielded many positive points of the loss to Team WNBA in the All-Star Game, writes Isabel Gonzalez.

📺What we’re watching on Tuesday

🏀 Women’s Basketball: Team USA vs. Germany3pm on FS1
⚾ Mets at Yankees7:05 PM on TBS