Olympic Basketball Results 2012: LeBron Leads USA to Easy Prelim Win over France

LeBron James decided to play facilitator for Team USA as he led the team to an easy preliminary win over the French national team. He dished out eight dimes, scored nine points and also brought down five rebounds while only turning the ball over once on the game.

However, his stat-line isn’t as impressive as he looked out on the floor. His ability to draw defenses in created wide-open looks for his teammates. James found them open frequently beyond the arc, in the paint and even 60-feet down-court with a bounce pass.

In just 25 minutes on the court, LeBron demonstrated excellent leadership and poise as he played the role of court general for the heavily favored Team USA. Twenty-five minutes was all that was needed for LeBron, as the Americans’ bench was more than capable of carrying the load. In fact, no US starter played more than Kevin Durant—28 minutes.

This will greatly help keep the superstars fresh for the medal rounds where the US will face its toughest challenge, likely Spain or Brazil in the gold medal game.

During the game, James drew comparisons from commentators to Ervin “Magic” Johnson because of his ability and willingness to create for his teammates.

That is what makes LeBron such a great player. One game he is being compared to Michael Jordan while he goes off for 40-plus points, and the next he’s being mentioned in the same sentence as Magic Johnson, one of the best passers in history.

If James can continue to play stifling defense on whatever positional player he is assigned to cover while creating fast-breaks in transition, there isn’t a team that can keep up with the high flying Americans.

LeBron looks like he has transcended into the role of the best basketball player in the world, and is proving it on a world stage.

As a Cleveland fan, you know it pains me to say that, so you know it’s probably true.

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 I don’t always tweet, but when I do it’s probably going to be about sports.