[autotag]Jayson Tatum[/autotag] would make some Duke basketball history on Saturday with a victory in the Olympic gold medal game, but he would carve out a place in NBA history as well.
Tatum looks to win his second consecutive gold medal at the Olympic Games, the first Blue Devil to accomplish that feat. However, he could also join Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and LeBron James as the only basketball players ever to make the All-NBA First Team, win an NBA title, and win Olympic gold in the same season.
Only six players have ever won the NBA Finals and the Olympic men’s basketball tournament in the same summer, including Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton in 2021. However, the All-NBA First Team aspect makes the list even more esteemed. Jordan did so twice in 1992 and 1996, and Pippen matched him as his Chicago Bulls teammate the second time.
James, who pulled off the trifecta in 2012, is the only player to do so this century.
Tatum made his third First Team in a row earlier this season with the Boston Celtics en route to the team’s first championship since 2008. He and Team USA take on France at 3:30 p.m. Eastern time.