The walls around LeBron James, Stephen Curry and their national team counterparts could have easily come crashing down, but order quickly returned during the United States’ 86-72 win over Canada at T-Mobile Arena on Wednesday. It was a flawed start for the gold medal favorites, but it should be considered a relief given the off-court distractions, on-court neglect and massive expectations.

“It was a slow start, which is no surprise,” coach Steve Kerr said. “You could see the rust on the offensive end. There were a lot of mistakes in the first half, especially. But I like the intensity of the defense and the work on the glass. We needed to set a tone for how we were going to play, and I think we did that.”

In the hours leading up to the game, the NBA announced that Los Angeles Clippers guard Kawhi Leonard would be replaced on the 12-man roster by Boston Celtics guard Derrick White. According to a statement from the program, the decision to remove Leonard was reached jointly by the NBA, the Clippers and Leonard due to ongoing concerns about his recent knee injury. Hill said Wednesday that he and the NBA coaching staff evaluated Leonard’s performance and progress during a four-day training camp before parting ways with the six-time All-Star.

“Ultimately, he was sent home,” Hill said, referring to the grueling logistics of the month-long Olympic run. “This is a sprint, not a warm-up. We’ve been open and honest and understanding the whole time. Our hearts are with him. We have to do what’s best for the team, protect the team and give ourselves the best chance to succeed. We just felt like we had to change course. We all tried. We made a valiant effort.”

The NBA believes White, who has great outside shooting and defensive skills, can fill the same role he played in Paris during the Boston Celtics’ run to the title. His previous experience playing in the 2019 Basketball World Cup and his short availability have helped. The 30-year-old guard is expected to join his new teammates in Abu Dhabi, the next stop on the five-game exhibition schedule.

But Boston Celtics forward JaeLen Brown seemed unhappy with the decision. Despite winning NBA Finals MVP and Eastern Conference Finals MVP awards, Brown was snubbed by the NBA, even though three of his teammates — Jayson Tatum, Jrue Holiday and White — were headed to Paris.

Brown had previously criticized Nike, the official sportswear supplier of the US national basketball team, and its founder Phil Knight, following the company’s decision to part ways with then-Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving after an anti-Semitism controversy in 2022. Brown hints on social media Brown tweeted that Nike was behind his snub: “Nike, this is what we do?”

Hill said that while the NBA is “proud of its partners,” its focus was on “building a team that complements each other, fits us and gives us the best chance to succeed.”

“One of the hardest things is to exclude players that I support and look forward to watching throughout the season and in the playoffs. Whatever theories there may be, they are just theories,” he added.

Without Leonard and Kevin Durant, who is still nursing a minor calf injury, Kerr James, Curry, Holiday, Devin Booker and Joel Embiid started against Canada. That lineup, designed to counter Canadian goaltenders Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jamal Murray, went 0-for-6 and fell into an 11-1 hole. James and Anthony Davis were on the receiving end of some tough fouls from the Canadiens, who made up for their lack of size by forcing fouls and playing hard.

Embiid was taken out of the game after fouling out midway through the third quarter of his national team debut. The 2023 NBA Most Valuable Player left the game with just five points and six rebounds in 12 minutes, a troubling start for a player who has been key to the Americans’ ability to keep up with international stars like Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Victor Wembanyama.

“This is my first time playing in the FIBA ​​tournament, so I have to get used to it,” Embiid said. “Especially for the big guys, once you try to be physical, you’re going to get punished for it. Last night was one of those nights. I’m a quick learner. I’ll adapt.”

Curry helped ease the pressure with a three-pointer midway through the first quarter, and Anthony Edwards then went on a rampage to lead the second unit and help the U.S. take a 41-33 lead at halftime. The Canadians didn’t mount much counterattack in the third quarter, as the Americans gradually pressed their talent and depth advantage. Curry and James hit a lob to a standing ovation from the 20,000-plus fans, and Edwards finished with 13 points to lead the scoring.

“There’s a temptation to delay every possession because every player can score,” said Curry, who had 12 points and three assists. “In that first unit, we had a hard time dealing with that. Once we settled in, everyone got more comfortable as we got deeper into the game.”

Obama cheered throughout the night from a courtside seat near the television broadcast crew, and dozens of former U.S. basketball players — including Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, Patrick Ewing, John Stockton, Reggie Miller, Cheryl Miller and Lynette Woodard — were recognized at midcourt during stoppages in play.

With his team shooting just 7-of-33 (21.2%) from outside the box and losing ground, Canada coach Jordy Fernandez rested his starters throughout the fourth quarter. As the U.S. stars cheered the crowd after defeating their neighbors to the north, an arena DJ went on a victory lap by playing Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” — a ferocious song aimed at Canadian rapper Drake.

Although many in the audience joined in the singing, James and Carey were in a serious, contemplative mood now that their Olympic journey has officially begun. The stars praised Obama’s motivational speech to their team Tuesday night: James said the former president was “one of the greatest people this world has ever seen” and had “a vision, a mindset, and an incredible word.” [that] “It always resonates,” Curry said, while describing getting “chills” when Obama discussed the unifying power of sports.

A simple task came to the fore at the end of a long and complicated day.

“He wants us to win, and that’s what the United States is known for,” Carey said of Obama.