Fearless Serbia coach Svetislav Pesic issues strong statement ahead of Olympic SF vs Team USA
Serbia coach Svetislav Pesic made a big claim ahead of his team's encounter against Team USA in the 2024 Paris Olympics men's basketball semifinal on Thursday. The 74-year-old tactician called the 2024 Team USA better than the Michael Jordan-led 1992 "Dream Team" and dubbed LeBron James and Co. as the "best national team in history."
While praising Steve Kerr's group, Pesic exuded confidence in his team's ability to pull off an upset win in the knockout game. The Serbian coach affirmed that his team is not "afraid" to battle against a star-studded Team USA.
"We're playing against an exceptional team, the best in the history of national team basketball, to me," Pesic told Serbian media on Wednesday, as quoted by the BasketNews.
"The Americans no longer present only that exceptional individual quality, they have meanwhile grown as a team. We respect that, but we also respect ourselves. And we are not afraid. We want to play a good game," he added.
Team USA's 12-member roster is headlined by some of the greatest players to play basketball. LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Steph Curry have dominated the sport for more than a decade. The 2024 Team USA has combined 14 NBA titles, eight NBA MVP awards and seven NBA Finals MVP award winners.
Huge challenge awaits Serbia in the semifinal
Serbia is gunning for their eighth Olympic medal in men's basketball. The European country has won one gold, five silver and one bronze medal in the past.
Pesic spoke about the team's primary goal of leaving Paris with another Olympic medal.
"We're not issuing a threat. We have no right to threaten (anybody) now, we're aware of who we're playing against," Pesic continued.
"The fact that we are among the four best teams is a huge success in itself, but we said that we came here not to do our best but to dedicate ourselves to winning an Olympic medal. Tomorrow is, of course, the first chance, and we don't want to lose it just like that," he added.
The winner between Serbia and Team USA will be guaranteed a medal. The loser will compete for the bronze medal against the loser of the game between France and Germany.
Serbia and Team USA squared off in the group stage and the latter registered a convincing 110-84 victory. In terms of the overall head-to-head record, Team USA holds a 4-1 edge over the Serbians.
Pesic's team registered a confidence-boosting 24-point comeback win against Australia in the quarterfinal. Nikola Jokic and Co. registered a 95-90 overtime win.
Serbia awaits its biggest challenge yet and it comes in a marquee knockout game.