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The Paris Olympics are set to begin and the Men’s Basketball tournament will once again provide fantastic competition as Team USA look to defend their gold medal.
A star-studded team full of NBA stars will look to make it five gold medals in a row at the Olympic Games, but they face plenty of competition from some stacked teams from Canada, France and even Serbia.
We’ll take a look at all the competition for the crown and provide you with our best free Olympics betting picks to try and earn you some extra cash while taking in the action on the court.
| Olympics: Men's Basketball |  |  |  |
| USA | -675 | -675 | -475 |
| Canada | +1100 | +1100 | +1100 |
| France | +1200 | +1200 | +1400 |
| Serbia | +1800 | +1800 | +1800 |
| Greece | +3000 | +3000 | +2200 |
Learn more about how to bet on the Olympic Games here.
Olympics: Men’s Basketball tournament information
- Paris Olympics 2024
- July 27 – August 3: Preliminary phase
- August 6: Quarter-finals
- August 8: Semi-finals
- August 10: Bronze and gold medal games
Men’s Basketball Olympics tournament favorites
Below you’ll find a list of favorites to win the Men’s Basketball tournament at the Paris Olympics 2024.
Team USA – (-475)
It’s widely believed that the “Dream Team” from the 1992 Olympics is the greatest group of basketball talent ever assembled, but there is absolutely an argument that this 2024 team could hang with them.
Superstars like LeBron James, Steph Curry, Jayson Tatum, Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, Joel Embiid and more will combine to create a super-team, which on paper should have enough to beat absolutely anybody opposing them on the court.
This is a squad with a combined 11 NBA Titles and eight NBA MVP awards, with Tyrese Haliburton and Devin Booker playing creator and incredible depth to the roster, even despite losing Kawhi Leonard on short notice.
The Americans have all the talent to make this their tournament to lose, and the motivation should be there after 2023’s disappointment.
At -475 there isn’t a tonne of value in the bet, but when they’re such clear favorites and have history on their side it’s the obvious bet to make.
Check out our review for Bovada sports betting here.
Team Canada – (+1100)
Canada’s top-to-bottom roster may be bested only by the Americans in terms of raw talent, with plenty of NBA stars of their own, but their lack of accomplishment as a unit is likely to continue here.
The bronze OT win over the USA at the World Cup in 2023 thanks to the brilliant Dillon Brooks was arguably the biggest moment in Canada’s national team history, and that is where such big expectations for Paris 2024 stem from.
The roster is arguably even stronger than it has ever been, with the likes of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jamal Murray and Brooks joining captain and NBA veteran Kelly Olynyk.
Unfortunately though, Andrew Wiggins is out for Team Canada, but the roster depth behind him is more formidable than ever before and
The future’s never looked brighter for Canada’s national team, but they’re at the point where they need to be now, instead of next. If they can find their form in the latter stages then they will feel confident about going toe-to-toe with the USA, and they’re a solid value bet should their neighbours falter.
Check out our review for BetOnline sports betting here.
Team France – (+1400)
As the host nation, there is a lot of hope that Team France could be able to cause a few upsets with a few star names looking to make their impact on the Olympic Games.
Rudy Gobert and Victor Wembanyama finished first and second respectively in the NBA Defensive Player of the Year voting last season, and will form a formidable unit on the front court protecting the French basket. Between the shorter 3-point line and lack of three-in-the-key violation, it will be even tougher for opponents to attack these giants in the paint, with the expectation that Gobert will be nailed to the rim and Wembanyama will be covering space and sweeping up any danger he spots.
Playing in front of a home crowd will no doubt give the French team an edge, and impressive performances in their warm-up games have seen their odds shorten.
France are rightly the dark horses for the tournament gold medal and at +1400 odds, there is top value in backing them to claim the win.
Team Serbia – (+1800)
Not a lot of teams have the star quality available to them that Team USA, Canada or France have, but none of those teams have Nikola Jokic in their roster and with him you always have a chance.
While Serbia is no longer in the top three for the bookmakers, they have the NBA MVP odds favorite who will be capable of turning a game on it’s head on his own.
Even without Jokic, the Serbians reached the gold medal game of last summer’s FIBA World Cup before losing to Germany and now they’ll add the best player in the field to a group that already includes fellow NBA player Bogdan Bogdanovic and former EuroLeague MVP Vasilije Micic.
The last time Jokic represented his country in the Olympics, Serbia earned a silver medal after losing in the final to Team USA. It’s clearly a well-drilled team, and they shouldn’t be overlooked for the gold medal with the quality they have.
