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By Alex Kirschenbaum
Contributing Entertainment Writer
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Although the Team USA has looked borderline unbeatable across the group play phase in men's 5-on-5 basketball at this year's Paris Olympics, the 3-on-3 team has seen considerably less success so far.
Sunday, the U.S. was eliminated prior to the medal round with a 2-5 record.
The lone player with any NBA experience, sharpshooting former lottery pick point guard Jimmer Fredette, missed the entirety of Team USA's final game against Team Netherlands on Sunday, in a lopsided 21-6 defeat. The Netherlands closed the game on a 16-2 run.
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Former Iowa Wolves G-League shooting guard Canyon Barry, ex-journeyman international forward Kareem Maddox, and Dylan Travis — a 3x3 veteran against international competition — played every second of the game with Fredette sidelined.
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Maddox spoke after the game about why putting together financing and building out awareness in 3x3 basketball stateside is partially to blame for Team USA's lackluster showing in the Olympics this year, according to Jay Busbee of Yahoo Sports.
"It's not visible except for every four years in the United States," he said. "There's no professional-level tournaments there. The closest we get is probably Edmonton, Canada ... The team we just played has been building and refining that very team for this very moment for seven years now, and we're just in a little bit of a different situation. Those are all full-time 3x3 guys."
Travis, who went undrafted out of Florida Southern in 2016, has suited up abroad for German squads Rot-Weiss Cuxhaven from 2016-17 and Scanplus Baskets in 2017–2018, Australian Big V team the Western Port Steelers in 2018, and semi-pro Australian NBL1 club the Waverley Falcons in 2019. He explained why his squad struggled to seal the deal.
"We have 'USA' across the chest, we're expected to win," said Travis. "People that don't know 3x3 will see this and think, 'What the heck are those guys doing? They're terrible.' But if you know the game, it's almost impossible to win at this stage. It's so much intensity, and it takes so much out of you. To win two games, and two came down to the wire, it was a hell of a feat for us."
Why wasn't the 3x3 men's team loaded with All-Stars and collegiate up-and-comers, much like the 3x3 women's team is this year?
The U.S. women's 3x3 squad includes longtime WNBA forward Cierra Burdick, now playing for Spanish team Valencia Basket; three-time Los Angeles Sparks forward Dearica Hamby, two-time Atlanta Dream forward Rhyne Howard; and two-time First-Team All-ACC TCU guard Hailey Van Lith, a presumed first-round draft pick in 2025.
For the men, even if their best player didn't suit up, would he have given the team enough to win?
Fredette, a 6-foot-2 combo guard, was selected with the No. 10 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings. He tooled around in the NBA off and on from 2011-19. Beyond Sacramento, Fredette also played on the Chicago Bulls, New Orleans Pelicans, New York Knicks and Phoenix Suns.
During that run, he also served stints with New York's Westchester Knicks G-League affiliate, and a CBA club (the Shanghai Sharks). Across 241 career NBA regular season games, Fredette posted averages of 6.0 points on .409/.372/.879 splits, 1.4 assists and 1.0 rebounds a night.
Fredette also suited up for Greek club Panathinaikos from 2019-20, and played again with Shanghai from 2020-21. He was a three-time CBA All-Star with the Sharks and a Greek League champion in 2020. At 35, he is also beyond his athletic prime.
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