Envisioning the 2024 USA Men's Basketball Team With College Basketball Stars

Before 1992, the Olympics provided a showcase for college standouts. Here's how that might look in the 2024 Paris Games.

Over dinner a few nights ago, a friend mentioned the lack of buzz for Olympic soccer compared to other sports at the Games. The prevailing sentiment is that the U23 rule prevents soccer’s biggest stars from competing, a decision believed to protect the importance of the World Cup.

Coincidentally, the U23 designation began with the 1992 Barcelona Olympics — the same Olympics famous for allowing NBA players to participate in men’s basketball for the first time.

NBA players representing their home nation is undeniably cool, so the following isn’t intended to suggest the Olympics adopt a similar rule for basketball. At the same time, with this summer marking the 40th anniversary of the transformative 1984 NBA draft class, it’s fun to imagine how college stars playing in Paris might look.

L. Jon Wertheim’s Glory Days — a terrific book I have referenced several times on The Press Break — begins its examination of a summer pivotal in shaping modern sports with a focus on the 1984 USA Men’s Basketball Team tryouts. Those practices in Indiana featured some of the biggest names in the sport’s history: Charles Barkley, John Stockton, and most famously, Michael Jordan.

The squad’s dominance in Los Angeles (sans Barkley, who clashed with coach Bobby Knight) provided an impactful introduction of a class of players crucial to growing the NBA’s popularity to a new audience.

Of course, the next Olympic Men’s Basketball Team at the 1988 Seoul Games struggled and necessitated the move to an all-NBA roster. Other nations were playing their pros, and even the best college players — a lineup that included David Robinson, Danny Manning, and Dan Majerle — showed their inexperience against fully developed hoopers like Lithuania powerhouse Arvydas Sabonis.

The following Team USA suggested lineup comes with the caveat that such a roster would have to face teams of similar age and experience makeup, lest this hypothetical become another example of the IOC applying different rules to American basketball than it does to other nations (see also: 1972 Gold Medal Game).

Maybe assembling a roster of college stars would relegate basketball to the background in a manner similar to U23 soccer fading behind other sports at the Olympics. I don’t see it that way, though. Although it’s a different time, the stage of the Olympic Games could be a fun introduction of the best young stars — some who will debut in the NBA in 2024-25, others who will return to college — to new audiences.

Before diving in, I would be remiss if I didn’t shout out a soon-to-be college name to know who I am getting acquainted with thanks to the Paris Olympics. Duke blue-chip prospect Khaman Maluach is coming off the bench for the tournament’s Cinderella story, South Sudan.

OK, that’s a sufficient preamble. The following are my collegiate picks for a 2024 USA Men’s Olympic Basketball Team, with partial lineups for a few other nations thrown in for good measure. Thank you, as always, for reading The Press Break, and consider subscribing if you have not yet done so.

TEAM USA

GUARDS

Settling on five perimeter players was pretty easy thanks to the clear standouts in the college game recently. This quintet covers all bases, with outstanding distributors (Tristen Newton, Tyler Kolek); dangerous 3-point shooters (RJ Davis, Mark Sears) who can catch fire offensively; and an athletic slasher able to get to the rim seemingly at will (Dalton Knecht).

• Mark Sears, Alabama

• RJ Davis, North Carolina

• Tyler Kolek, Marquette

• Tristen Newton, UConn

• Dalton Knecht, Tennessee

FORWARDS

I struggled the most with forwards and centers — not because it was difficult to reach seven options, but because settling on only seven was a tall order.

International competition relies heavily on a more traditional low-post presence than is common in today’s NBA game. For that reason alone, a Team USA made up of college standouts — where the more old-school interior style still thrives — might actually be less prone to an upset than NBA counterparts.

I ultimately settled on Hunter Dickinson, Armando Bacot, and Donovan Clingan as my final three. Clingan’s statistics over the course of his college career are the least impressive, having only broken out as a sophomore while backing up star Adama Sanogo in the 2022-23 season.

However, Clingan’s tournament experience ultimately set him apart. Bacot likewise has impressive tournament experience; his performance in North Carolina’s 2022 National Championship Game ranks among the best individual showings from any NCAA Tournament in my time following March Madness.

Choosing between Bacot and Kansas’ Hunter Dickinson came down to a simple matter of size. With Dickinson having three inches on Bacot, he got the nod to face a tournament field featuring opponents such as 7-foot-4 Canadian star Zach Edey (spoiler).

However, if there was anyone on this team to spark international controversy akin to Charles Barkley’s infamous 1992 elbow-throw against Angola, it’s Dickinson.

• Jaedon LeDee, San Diego State

• DaRon Holmes, Dayton

• Baylor Scheierman, Creighton

• Kyle Filipowski, Duke

CENTERS

• Johni Broome, Auburn

• Hunter Dickinson, Kansas

• Donovan Clingan, UConn

CANADA

Basketball began as a thoroughly American game, but we owe its creation to a Canadian import, James Naismith. From Naismith, Canada has a noteworthy history on the American college hardwood, including landmark moments such as a freshman Steve Nash leading Santa Clara to a 15-over-2 upset of Arizona in 1993.

Canada’s impact on the NCAA game has exploded in recent years with All-American honorees like Dillon Brooks and Bennedict Mathurin. Kentucky became a hub for Canadian talent under John Calipari, bringing in NBA stars Jamal Murray and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

A bit of a tangent, but Murray and SGA deserve credit for helping make New Balance and Converse, two shoe brands I have long had an affinity for, fashionable. SGA’s endorsement of the Converse Weapon was a highlight of the 2023-24 season in which he arguably should have won NBA Most Valuable Player.

Although both the NBA MVP and Naismith Award winner coming from Canada in the same year may have put pressure on us Americans to try to usurp hockey from our neighbors to the North.

• Zach Edey, Purdue: I’m honestly a bit surprised the two-time Naismith Award winner isn’t on the actual Team Canada for the Paris Olympics.

• Xaivian Lee, Princeton: One of the most surprising breakthrough players of 2023-24, Xaivian Lee scored 17.1 points, grabbed 5.7 rebounds, and dished 3.7 assists per game. He could be the most promising NBA prospect from Princeton since Bill Bradley.

• Emanuel Miller, TCU: The veteran forward had the best of five collegiate seasons in 2023-24, earning All-Big 12 honors with 15.8 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.

• Fardaws Aimaq, Cal: Combining with Edey, the rugged Fardaws Aimaq would give the Canadian team a considerable advantage on the glass.

• Jahmyl Telfort, Butler: The former CAA Sixth Man of the Year at Northeastern averaged double figures for a fourth consecutive season, posting 13.9 points per game in his first year at Butler.

FRANCE

Since being most noteworthy to Americans primarily for having center Frederic Weis on the wrong side of one of the most famous posterizations in basketball history, courtesy of Vince Carter at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, France’s hoops reputation stateside has grown exponentially. The nation’s contributions to the game include Hall of Famer Tony Parker and 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama — and the latter would qualify for the Games using a U23 designation.

For the purpose of this exercise, however, we’re focusing only on players who spent the past season or will play the upcoming season in college. Fortunately, there is no shortage of noteworthy options.

The French influence has reached the American college game, including the following:

• Daniel Batcho, Louisiana Tech: Earned All-Conference USA recognition after transferring from Texas Tech, posting 15.2 points and 9.8 rebounds per game.

• Maxime Raynaud, Stanford: All Pac-12 center made the most significant strides of his career in Year 3, putting up just shy of a double-double per game at 15.5 points and 9.6 rebounds.

• Yohan Traore, SMU (UC Santa Barbara): Talented big man is headed to the ACC after a breakout sophomore season in the Big West. He averaged 14.5 points and 5.1 rebounds per game for UC Santa Barbara.

AUSTRALIA

With the exception of Canada, arguably no other nation’s import talent has had a more consistent impact on American college basketball than Australia. Saint Mary’s has been a primary hub for Aussie players — and the Gaels provide no shortage of potential options for the Australian team — but the Land Down Under’s contributions to college hoops have expanded in recent years.

• Tyrese Proctor, Duke: A budding NBA prospect, Australian guard Tyrese Proctor will be a veteran leader for Duke’s Final Four-quality 2024-25 team.

• Alex Ducas, Saint Mary’s: The most recent addition to Saint Mary’s lengthy Australian legacy earned All-West Coast Conference honors twice.

• Elijah Pepper, UC Davis: Elijah Pepper headed back Down Under to begin his pro career in Australia’s NBL — but not before winning Big West Conference Player of the Year in 2023-24.

• Reyne Smith, College of Charleston: The outstanding 3-point shooting of Reyne Smith played a pivotal role in Charleston winning back-to-back NCAA Tournament bids.

NIGERIA

D’Tigers emerged as perhaps the best story of the peculiar 2021 Tokyo Olympics, beating Team USA in an exhibition contest during the pandemic-affected tournament.

Nigeria did not qualify for the 2024 Paris Games. Nevertheless, the nation’s international basketball future is bright thanks to some of the talent it boasts on the collegiate scene.

• Mackenzie Mgbako, Indiana: Although from New Jersey, the 2023-24 Big Ten Rookie of the Year comes from a Nigerian family. He would be the cornerstone of a talented national team heavy on forwards and centers.

• Nelly Junior Joseph, New Mexico: After twice earning All-MAAC honors at Iona, including playing for Rick Pitino in 2022-23, Nelly Junior Joseph was essential to New Mexico winning the Mountain West chamionship for Richard Pitino’s 2023-24 Lobos. He posted north of eight points and eight rebounds per game.

• Cliff Omoruyi, Alabama (Rutgers): After twice earning Big Ten All-Defensive recognition at Rutgers, Cliff Omoruyi continues Alabama’s recent run of pulling outstanding transfers from the portal.

LITHUANIA

• Augustas Marciulionis, Saint Mary’s: His father and longtime Golden State Warriors contributor, Sarunas Marciulionis, was a star of the 1980s Soviet teams and the famed 1992 Lithuanian team that won Bronze in Barcelona. Augustus Marciulionis didn’t just follow in his father’s footsteps; Augustas staked his own lofty reputation on the Bay Area basketball scene as the 2023-24 WCC Player of the Year.

• Motiejus Krivas, Arizona: Although he spent much of his first season at Arizona backing up another interntional important, Mali’s Oumar Ballo (now at Indiana), Motiejus Krivas is generating buzz for 2024-25 with his play in the FIBA U20 EuroBasket event.

• Kasparas Jakucionis, Illinois: He’s yet to debut in the college game, but already Kasparas Jakucionis is making himself known through viral highlights at this summer’s FIBA U18 competition.

UNITED KINGDOM

Our peers from Across The Pond aren’t exactly known for hardwood prowess, having only ever qualified for Olympic Men’s Basketball as the host nation. However, using college-aged players, the Brits would have an impressive low-post tandem around whom to build in Great Osobor and Amari Williams.

Osobor broke out from obscurity at Montana State to become the 2023-24 Mountain West Conference Player of the Year at Utah State. His near-double-double per game output paced the Aggies to the MWC regular-season championship, and Osobor will aim for similar impact following coach Danny Sprinkle to Washington in 2024-25.

Williams, meanwhile, exits Drexel as the only three-time CAA Defensive Player of the Year — a noteworthy accomplishment, especially considering it’s a conference that boasts David Robinson among its alumni.

Complementing the duo on the perimeter, Wake Forest guard Cameron Hildreth has steadily developed into an All-ACC caliber player. The Olympics providing a launching pad for a huge college season for a player like Hildreth would be a ton of fun.