Following Team USA's comprehensive 122-87 win over Brazil on Tuesday in the quarterfinals of the men's basketball tournament at the 2024 Paris Olympics, American coach Steve Kerr told reporters that LeBron James received four stitches to close a gash over his left eye.
Despite the injury, James is expected to be available for Team USA's semifinal matchup against Nikola Jokic and Serbia on Thursday. That game is set to tip-off at 3 p.m. ET.
In the middle of the third quarter on Tuesday, James had the ball on the top of the key and tried to fire a pass through traffic to Bam Adebayo, but it was picked off by Brazil. On the ensuing fastbreak, Georginho de Paula tipped in a putback and accidentally clipped James in the side of the head with his elbow as he was coming down.
James immediately clutched his face and then went to the ground as de Paula apologized. Kerr called a timeout to get James out of the game, and the veteran went to the bench with a towel on his face to stop the bleeding. Eventually, James went back to the locker room to receive further medical care.
While James eventually returned to the bench, he did not check back into the game and finished with 12 points, three rebounds, nine assists and three steals on 5-of-6 shooting in 17 minutes.
Jayson Tatum ALLEY-OOP off the inbound from LeBron James! 🇺🇸😤
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 6, 2024
📺 USA Network and Peacock | #ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/CadgQ1aQlu
James, who was the flag bearer for the United States' Olympic contingent at the opening ceremonies, is playing in his first Olympics since 2012. Twelve years after he led Team USA to gold in London, he remains the Americans' most important player. The offense has run through him as a point forward, and including the win over Brazil, he is now second in the tournament at 7.8 assists per game. He's also averaging 13.8 points (third on Team USA) and 5.8 rebounds (also third).
The Americans are on a quest for a fifth consecutive gold medal and need just two more wins to get the job done. Thus far, they are a perfect 4-0 and have won every game by double digits.