Team USA is already in medal time as they face Serbia in the Olympics semifinals Thursday.
Nikola Jokic leads a strong Serbia team that will give Team USA fits during each minute he’s on the floor.
Serbia was defeated by USA in the group stage of the Olympics, 110-84, but Jokic completely transforms this team when he’s on the floor.
Jokic’s plus/minus in a historic comeback over Austrailia was +17, and they were -12 in the seven minutes he did not play.
USA is a 16-point favorite in the game and -1800 on the moneyline to reach the gold medal game.
Last time out, we nailed backing Team USA as 26.5-point favorites and LeBron James over 6.5 assists (+100). We’re looking at a different betting angle for this one.
USA vs. Serbia prediction
In the first game during group play, Serbia was only 12-point underdogs but find themselves much further down at 16-point underdogs Thursday.
Serbia’s main concern will be survival during non-Jokic minutes, as their team minus Jokic is far from a top squad in the world.
2024 PARIS OLYMPICS
The Nuggets won’t want to see it, but Jokic might have to play almost every minute of this game.
Kevin Durant and LeBron James led the way for Team USA, and that could happen again Thursday considering there’s no one on Serbia that can match up with that duo.
But medal matches will always breed additional pressure, even with top players throughout the roster.
Look to back Serbia here as 16-point underdogs here with a spot in the final on the line.
The fair number is probably closer to the 12 that it was in the group stage, even factoring in the USA’s utter domination in basketball in the games leading up to this.
PICK: Serbia +16 (-110)
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