US Men's National Basketball Team at Rio 2016 Olympics: New York Knicks Forward, Carmelo Anthony Surpasses LeBron James as USA's All-Time Top Scorer
Carmelo Anthony has dethroned LeBron James as the king of Team USA in the Olympics. The 32-year-old power forward of the New York Knicks surpassed the record of the three-time NBA Finals MVP as the all-time top scorer of the US Men's Olympic Basketball Team.
The New King of Team USA
ESPN reported that Anthony broke James' Olympic record last Wednesday as the all-time leading scorer in the history of US men's basketball team. The three-time Olympian scored 31 points during Team USA's 98-88 victory against Australia, giving him a total of 293 points since his stint in 2008.
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James previously held the all-time high score of 273 points in the American basketball team, which he obtained during his 2008 and 2012 Olympic appearance. Retired basketball players David Robinson (1992, 1996) and Michael Jordan (1984, 1992) were also part of the all-time U.S. list, with 270 points and 256 points, respectively. It should be noted though that Anthony is the only three-time Olympian among the top scorers of Team USA.
Per NBC Olympics, Oscar Schmidt currently holds the all-time high score of 1,094 points in the men's basketball history of the Olympics. But unlike Anthony, Schmidt's time in the court was not restricted. The Brazilian basketball legend has played in five summer Olympics and was the top scorer in three of them.
More Points for Anthony
As Team USA (4-0) continues to dominate the preliminary rounds of the men's basketball in the Rio 2016 Olympics, Anthony keeps on earning more points in the process. After the team's match against Australia last Wednesday, the star forward of the Knicks accumulated additional 12 points during Team USA's hard-fought victory against Serbia (1-3) on Friday night.
Per USAB, the American basketball team struggled to outpace Serbia, but ended the close match with a 94-91 win. Cleveland Cavaliers' Kyrie Irving led the team with 15 points.
Team USA, who currently holds the top spot in the Group A of the preliminary rounds, will go against France on Aug. 14. They are expected to advance to the quarterfinals scheduled on Aug. 17.
According to USA Today, the Friday night victory of USA in the Rio Games is already the team's 21st consecutive Olympic win and 49th consecutive international triumph. Team USA has dominated the sport in the past two Olympic events.
Presently, the team has accumulated 14 gold medals, one silver medal and two bronze medals in 17 appearances since 1936.
