Team USA secured their fifth consecutive gold medal over the weekend by defeating the host country of France in the final game of the 2024 Olympics. Stephen Curry and LeBron James led the way for Team USA on the offensive end, but Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis was the defensive anchor for the gold medal winners.
Davis had four blocks and three steals in the gold medal game, but his impact went far beyond the box score. He found himself in the closing lineup of that final game, and was integral in stifling opponents throughout the entirety of the tournament.
All of that made it feel like a given that he would walk away with the Olympics’ best defensive player award, with James being named MVP and James and Curry being named to the All-Star Five team. But FIBA went a different direction with the award, giving it to Aleksa Avramovic of Serbia:
🛡️ Best Defensive Player of #Paris2024 Men's #Basketball 🛡️
Aleksa Avramovic, Serbia 🇷🇸 pic.twitter.com/D0GhRPsOI6
— FIBA (@FIBA) August 10, 2024
Avramovic did incredible work for Serbia on their path to a bronze medal. He helped anchor a defense when Nikola Jokic was focused more on being the through-man for the entire offensive attack. However, Davis easily could have been given this award given his impact compared to his role.
Davis has been one of the best all-around defenders in the world for years now. And he certainly proved it with his work at the Olympics. But similar to how it has gone in the NBA, Davis won’t be widely recognized for that work. Davis has yet to win a Defensive Player of the Year award in the NBA despite being a top defender each and every year.
While this award ultimately doesn’t mean much compared to the gold medal, it still would have been great to finally see the Lakers superstar get an accolade for the impact he brings to that end of the floor.
Anthony Davis thinks he’ll play in 2028 Olympics
LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant are all likely done with Olympic play given their ages.
James will be 43 when the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles come around, and both Durant and Curry will be in their late 30s. Anthony Davis, though, is a more interesting case. He proved this summer that he is one of the game’s truly elite two-way players, but he’ll be 35 in 2028 and has a detailed injury history already.
Davis, though, is still hopeful to be a part of Team USA when Los Angeles hosts the games in four years.
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