Jokic shines, but Team USA rolls to victory in Olympic basketball

Nikola Jokic did his part. His teammates, however, did not.

The Nuggets center had 20 points, eight assists and five rebounds in Serbia’s Olympic opener. But it wasn’t enough as the United States rolled to a 110-84 victory.

When Jokic was on the field, his team had a chance. In his 31 minutes, Serbia tied the game against the USA. At that time, the score was 81-81.

However, when the big man wasn’t on the court, things went wrong. Jokic was on the court for just nine minutes, but his team was outscored by 26 points in that span. They scored just three points when the center was resting.

The game also featured a highly anticipated matchup between Jokic and Joel Embiid. The big men have won the last four Most Valuable Player awards together, and have developed a rivalry along the way.

On the Olympic stage, however, Jokic was by far the better player, with Embiid finishing the game with just four points and two rebounds.

Jokic vs. Embiid doesn’t go well for Embiid photo.twitter.com/WCyMxJfuf1

— Kevin O’Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) July 28, 2024

The US will play South Sudan next, kicking off on Wednesday. Serbia will play Puerto Rico on the same day.

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