After leading Team USA to Gold, Stephen Curry and LeBron James have continued to propel their NBA teams to success this season.
They were together for a month-and-a-half, traveled to three countries for warmup games and the main event, and competed against the growing threat of a rival up-and-coming national team playing on its home soil in the thrilling final.
Team USA beat France at the 2024 Paris Games anyway for the gold medal, a crowning achievement for all involved.
“There’s something special about a five-week sprint, trying to come together with the group, nobody really caring about stats,” Team USA head coach Steve Kerr told NBA.com upon returning home. “I think there’s a real sense of pride. You saw our guys on the gold medal stand holding their hands over their hearts. That was a genuine display of affection for our country. It’s very moving to have that feeling of, ‘Wow, we’re representing our country.’ I think it’s a real emotion.”
The moments for the Americans were plentiful: LeBron James defying age, Kevin Durant pushing his rich international legacy through another era … and Stephen Curry unloading 3-pointers in the final frantic minutes of the championship game. It was likely the final time those three legends will be teammates.
That was then … and this is now. Eight months later, how have the coach and players navigated the ensuing NBA season? What about their stamina, their bodies and their levels of success — or lack of it?
With Curry and Kerr facing LeBron on Thursday in the Warriors-Lakers tipoff (10 ET, TNT), we spotlight the aftermath of the Olympics and examine what has happened since then to the 12 players (plus one) and coach (listed alphabetically by last name):
Bam Adebayo
Last summer: He was a crucial part of the Americans’ two-man tag-team interior defenders, along with Anthony Davis, that gave the U.S. an edge in the paint and was specifically created to check Nikola Jokić (mostly) of Serbia and Frenchman Victor Wembanyama.
This season: Everything signals a regression by a player who was an All-Star and finished third in the Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2023-24. In particular, he hasn’t grown offensively, which has affected a Miami team that traded Jimmy Butler and became heavily reliant on Tyler Herro for buckets. He’s averaging fewer points, shooting a lower percentage and getting fewer rebounds than the year before.
Devin Booker
Last summer: His all-around play was a pleasant surprise, especially his defense and ability to supply key minutes as a distributor. Book proved to be more than a shooter. Kerr and the coaching staff raved.
This season: Booker remains a tough assignment for defenders but this hasn’t been the year he expected, for himself or the Suns. Phoenix might miss the playoffs, or the SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament, which would be a massive come-down from winning a gold medal. Meanwhile, Book’s shooting efficiency is the lowest since his third season and he failed to make the All-Star team.
Stephen Curry
Last Summer: That shot. It was heard around the world, provided the finishing touch in the gold medal game, instantly became an international meme when Curry did the night-night, and just might be the most memorable 3-pointer of his basketball career (which says plenty).
This season: He started slowly, as did the Warriors, and Curry suffered through multiple poor shooting nights through the first several weeks of the season. Then he recaptured his touch post-holiday and hasn’t looked back. Yet another milestone was captured when he recently crashed the 4,000 mark for 3-pointers made.
The ultimate 'Night Night' collection.
Brought to you by, Stephen Curry. pic.twitter.com/wYcDBTzunK
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) March 7, 2025
Anthony Davis
Last summer: His versatility at both ends was welcomed, especially his rim protection. Davis also came off the bench for a spell and he thrived in that role. He was the best big man on the team for much of the summer.
This season: It has been an insane experience, one he couldn’t have predicted. Davis was on early MVP watch through November after a torrid start. A few months later, he was sent from the Lakers to Dallas in the seismic Luka Doncic deal, then subsequently limped off the floor in his very first game with the Mavericks. His head is probably still spinning, but he had his best game yet on Wednesday.
Kevin Durant
Last summer: The all-time bucket-getter in international history managed to improve as the summer progressed. It began auspiciously when Durant missed all of the warm-up games with injury. Then he rose spectacularly in the medal round.
This season: Much like Booker, his Olympic teammate, Durant is coping hard with the Suns’ disappointing season. Unlike Booker, however, Durant’s future in Phoenix seems cloudy at best. He was spared at the trade deadline, and he’s having an All-Star season, yet one of the best closers of this generation seems destined to stop hooping in April.
Anthony Edwards
Last summer: The brash newcomer declared himself a first-option on a team loaded with such players, then backed it up at times before his minutes began to dwindle. He spent considerable time downloading info from his idol, Durant.
This season: Another period of growth is evident with Edwards, a top-five scorer who has the Wolves on the rise after a sluggish start and should collect votes for All-NBA, maybe second or third team. Edwards is shooting 3s at a record pace for him, which is either good or bad, depending on how many he’s making that night.
Joel Embiid
Last summer: He chose Team USA over France and instantly became a villain in Paris. Maybe the more controversial decision was to play in the Olympics, period, given how injuries dogged him in the NBA playoffs in the spring. He reported out of shape but improved and was massive in the medal round.
This season: The spiral of a former Kia MVP continued for the Sixers center; Philly shut him down before March because of persistent knee issues. Therefore, in the two seasons since winning that MVP, Embiid played just 58 games combined. Had he skipped the Olympics and chose rehab/rest/surgery instead, might he be in uniform right now? Who knows. Surprisingly, the organization didn’t pull the plug on the Olympics.
Tyrese Haliburton
Last summer: He did more high-fiving and clapping from the bench as a sparsely-used backup than a rotational player. When he did play, his passing provided a needed element. He was professional throughout the experience, though, his first in the Games.
This season: The what’s-wrong-with-Haliburton questions blared for the first two months when the Pacers’ guard and assists king appeared disjointed and ineffective. He impacted games much better by January; still, too late to get voted an All-Star.
Jrue Holiday
Last summer: A starter through much of the Olympics, he was rightly valued for his defense and steady play. Though he wasn’t overly spectacular, very rarely was he a liability on the floor, at either end.
This season: At 34, Holiday is staring at the decline part of his career. Most of his important statistical categories are at career lows (only one double-double) or lowest since his rookie season. Still, the defending champion Celtics aren’t worried; Holiday’s contributions will weigh more heavily during the postseason, particularly his defense.
LeBron James
Last summer: The graybeard quickly established himself as the best player on the team throughout the exhibition games and the Olympic early rounds by flexing his skills and downplaying his age (then 39). He fizzled late in the gold medal game, though, perhaps worn down by the summer.
This season: At 40, he remains an athletic marvel, in terms of his availability, stamina and production. He’s top-15 in scoring, leading the Lakers in assists and getting eight rebounds a night. Players his age, if they’re lucky to still be in the league, are slowing down, not appearing on Kia MVP ladders.
Kawhi Leonard
Last summer: A controversial selection from the very start, his injury history once again stole a basketball moment. A mutual decision by the USA staff and Clippers pulled the plug after a week of practice. Kawhi couldn’t make it out of training camp or make the flight overseas.
This season: He didn’t play his first game until Jan. 4 and was on a minutes diet until mid-February. He has a pair of 40-minute games in March, though, and appears mended — for now, anyway. As always, when healthy, Kawhi is All-NBA quality and a prime option in the clutch.
Jayson Tatum
Last summer: Fresh off the euphoria of an NBA championship, Tatum became the centerpiece of an uproar back home in the States when he was benched twice and saw the second-fewest minutes of any player, which left him dazed and confused.
This season: He’s playing MVP-level basketball and has for the Celtics since opening night, impacting games in multiple ways (scoring, rebounding and improved passing). He’ll be a favorite to make first team All-NBA.
Derrick White
Last summer: As a hasty replacement for Kawhi, White quickly established himself as a valuable reserve. Kerr called him an ideal international player. White was controversially chosen over his Celtics teammate and Finals MVP, Jaylen Brown.
This season: He’s averaging 19 points and almost five rebounds and assists since the All-Star break and once again rates as a high-quality supporting cast player. There have been games when White is either the best player on the floor for Boston, or one of them.
Coach Steve Kerr
Last summer: For the first time in his coaching career, Kerr dealt with severe second-guessing over his rotation and specifically the way he handled Tatum. Curry once again came to the rescue and bailed him out in the closely contested gold medal game.
This season: He became the winningest coach in franchise history and has the Warriors on track for a winning season and possible playoff appearance. Just last month Golden State was 25-26; since then, Kerr has pressed all the right buttons (the Jimmy Butler trade helped, too).
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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA for more than 25 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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