USA vs Nigeria
July 10, 2021 8:00 pm EDT
The Line: USA -27.5 -- Over/Under 181.5
(Get latest betting odds)
Team USA and Nigeria meet Saturday night in a mens basketball International Friendly exhibition match in Las Vegas.
The United States is the overwhelming favorite to bring home gold in the 2020 Olympics, as the team is stacked with NBA top tier talent. Players such as Damian Lillard, Jayson Tatum, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal lead the way. Of course, Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton, players who are scheduled to play in Tokyo, won’t participate in this game with them currently in the NBA Finals. A shorter handed team should allow some of the younger guns in Bam Adebayo and Zach LaVine to get more run as they gear up for the big games. The coaches for team USA include Gregg Popovich, Steve Kerr, Lloyd Pierce and Jay Wright. These games are all about building chemistry and knocking off any potential rust before the real competition begins July 25 against France.
Nigeria isn’t a team that’s getting a lot of attention from the media, but this is a club that could surprise some folks in Tokyo. While it’s not led by household names, Nigeria has a lot of NBA experience with players such as Jahlil Okafor , Precious Achiuwa, Josh Okogie and Metu Chimezie. We also can’t forget about Gabe Vincent, KZ Okpala and Al-Farouq Aminu. Nigeria is also coached by Mike Brown, who was the NBA Coach of the Year in 2009 and is a three-time NBA champion as an assistant coach. Brown mentioned his goal is to make Africa proud while also proving its a nation on the rise in the sport. While it’s an exhibition, putting a good effort against the favorites would be a great start.
USA is going to blowout a lot of teams in this tournament and this game could be no different. However, it is an exhibition game and we could see some guys ease into things. This game is also more meaningful to Nigeria, a club eager to earn respect and prove it belongs in the same conversation as teams that could medal. There’s a lot of NBA experience on Nigeria’s side, so I expect an honest and competitive effort. This is a lot of points.
I’ll lean toward Nigeria and the free buckets.
