Stephen Curry admits it, with the United States trailing Serbia late in their Olympic men's basketball semi-final the thought flashed through his mind: "I don't want to be on THAT team ... that doesn't get it done."
Four-time NBA champion Curry and his NBA superstar US teammates floundered for most of 40 minutes against a Serbian side they'd blown out in group play.
They finally found a way through thanks in large part to 36 points from Curry, and can win their fifth straight Olympic gold and their 17th overall with a victory over host nation France on Saturday.
The near-miss raised the specter of the 2004 Athens Games, when the US favorites failed to reach the final and settled for a bronze that ended a run of three straight triumphs launched by the Dream Team of 1992.
For Curry it would have been especially bitter. At 36, he's playing in his first, and what he expects will be his only, Olympics.
"I didn't want to be on the (first USA) team since 2004 that didn't make it to the gold medal game, and get a gold medal in my one opportunity," he said.
Curry has long been a dominant force in the NBA.
A two-time NBA Most Valuable Player, a two-time league scoring champion and the 2022 Finals MVP, he got off to a subdued start in his first Games, with coach Steve Kerr saying perhaps he was pressing too hard.
Curry's breakout game couldn't have come at a better time. Serbia seized control early in their semi-final, taking a 17-point lead in the second quarter.
For most of the night Serbia absorbed everything the USA threw at them, but with less than three minutes to play, Curry rattled in a three-pointer that gave them a lead they wouldn't relinquish.
The man with the most three-pointers in NBA history — 3,747 and counting — made nine of his 14 three-point attempts and connected on 12 of 19 shots overall.
"The game tells you what needs to happen," said Curry after his hot hand made him, for one night at least, the Americans' go-to guy.
"The ball finds the open guy. The game before we won by about 20. I had three shot attempts and was happy about it because everything kind of came easy because we created good offense.
"Last night it was a little stagnant. I was hot to begin. (That) kind of kept us alive. And then from there it was everybody stepping into their moment for us.
"The challenge is to not overthink on every possession because you have so much talent. You have so many options," he added.
"But it was kind of like the perfect basketball in that fourth quarter where you found the right match-up ... Everybody was working together and nothing was forced.
"That's our best version of ourselves. Hopefully we'll be able to do that for 40 minutes and not 10 come (Saturday)."
AFP