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LeBron James and Kevin Durant led Team USA to victory against Serbia in the opening game of the Paris Olympic Games. Durant scored 23 points with James adding 21 points, nine assists and seven rebounds as the U.S. defeated Serbia 110-84 on Sunday. James said after the game: “That’s the best game we’ve played so far .. whatever it takes. It’s going to be somebody different every day. And we have that type of firepower.”
James and Durant combined for 18 for 22 from the field (8 of 9 for Durant, 9 of 13 for James), while Jrue Holiday scored 15, Devin Booker had 12 and Anthony Edwards and Stephen Curry each added 11.
The U.S. earned the victory without the Celtics’ Jayson Tatum in the rotation; U.S. coach Steve Kerr shared: “I went with the combinations that I felt like would make sense. I talked to him and he’s incredibly professional. And that’s tonight. It doesn’t mean it’s going to stay that way the rest of the tournament. He’ll make his mark. Our guys know this: The key to this whole thing is to put all the NBA stuff in the rear-view mirror and just win six games. Jayson’s the ultimate pro, a champion, he handled it well and he’ll be ready for the next one.”
Both teams will play again on Wednesday — the U.S. will face South Sudan; and Serbia will play Puerto Rico.
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