LeBron James and Team USA thrash Serbia in Olympic warmup, despite claims of 'ego and other BS' threatening their gold medal chase

LeBron James and Anthony Davis led the way for Team USA in its blowout win over Serbia before the 2024 Paris Olympics, as the Lakers duo claimed revenge on Nikola Jokic amid 'ego' claims potentially derailing the Star and Stripes' gold medal quest.

Facing the 'Joker' for the first time since the Lakers were swept in the playoffs in April (4-1), James, 39, scored a mere 5 points in the US' 105-74 victory in Abu Dhabi. The Americans improve to 3-0 on the team's pre-Olympics tour after Wednesday's game.

Davis, 31, only had three points but put on a memorable defensive performance with six blocks, including a pin off the glass at the 8-minute mark in the fourth quarter that preceded a standing ovation.

Warriors guard Steph Curry was the US' highest scorer of the matchup with 18 points on 6 of 9 shooting overall, including 4 of 6 shots taken from behind the arc.

Coming fresh off an NBA Championship-winning season with the Celtics, Jayson Tatum was disappointing with no points or assists and just one rebound.

But, he wasn't the only NBA player to struggle in the exhibition game, as Jokic, who's coming off his third MVP season on the Nuggets, had 8 points on 3 of 10 shooting overall, including 0 of 2 3-point attempts.

Bam Adebayo scored at will -- inside and out -- and helped Davis make life difficult for the Jokic, as the Heat center ended the contest with 17 points. Team USA made 16 of 36 shots from 3-point range.  

One standout play from the contest was Curry corralling a loose ball with a lightning release from the left wing, splashing his fifth 3-pointer of the game to inflate the US advantage to 90-63. James then emphatically stamped a right-handed slam off a lob from Adebayo.

The next possession was a highlight reel of dribbling and passing that ended with another Curry 3, followed by James getting downhill and powering for a lefty finish and 31-point lead.

Jokic touched the ball on nearly every possession and passionately implored teammates to dig in defensively to no avail. Jokic spent the fourth quarter seated with Serbia and the US to meet again in the first Pool C game for both countries in the Olympics on July 28.

Shooting and depth stood out as the US gathered around Jokic on the defensive end and spread the ball around with extra passes. Adebayo drained a 3 from the top of the key to push the lead to 81-53 late in the third quarter.

Team USA ended the first half with a finishing kick sparked by high-energy defense and led 59-45 thanks to the bench outscoring the starters, 30-29.

The Americans plays two more games before the Olympics begin with pool play this month, with South Sudan up next Saturday in London.