The 2020 Tokyo Men’s Olympic Basketball tournament officially starts on July 25 and ends on August 7, 2021. Twelve countries and a plethora of current and former NBA players will be in Tokyo to compete for bronze, silver, and gold Olympic medals — and many of those players have Moments on Top Shot.
No fans will be in attendance at any of the Olympic events taking place in Tokyo this year due to a COVID-19 state of emergency — a la the 2020 NBA bubble at Walt Disney World. But there will still be plenty of eyes on this year’s tournament across the globe.
Every four years there is a pack of storylines surrounding Team USA Olympic men’s basketball team and this year is no different. The subplots include whether or not Damian Lillard will request a trade from the Blazers, Kevin Love admitting he’s not in prime basketball shape, and the fact that Team USA lost its first two preliminary games against Nigeria and Australia earlier this month.
With the potential for daily Olympic Quests on Top Shot according to community manager Jacob Eisenberg, let’s explore which NBA players will be contributing to the on-court drama over the next few weeks, how many Top Shot Moments they have available, and what their price is on the marketplace.
Players in the Olympics with Top Shot Moments
In a recent Discord Office Hours session, NBA Top Shot community manager Jacob Eisenberg said they will not be releasing official Olympic Basketball Moments this year due to licensing issues. However, he did say Top Shot is considering Showcase Quests — similar to the current Finals Quests — using NBA players in the Olympics who already have Top Shot Moments.
By owning these Moments, collectors could be rewarded with a chance to win a pack or special Moments — like the Russell Westbrook Triple-Double Quest. The Charlotte Hornets, Indiana Pacers, Memphis Grizzlies, and Cleveland Cavaliers are the only NBA teams not represented in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The 12 Olympic men’s basketball teams competing for a gold medal are divided into three groups of four and will each play three group phase games. After the group phase games, the top two teams from each group and the two best third-place teams will qualify for the Quarterfinals tournament to determine a winner.
Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday, and Khris Middleton just wrapped up the NBA Finals, but as of now, all three are scheduled to join Team USA in Tokyo soon.
Team USA
Bam Adebayo (Miami Heat): 15 Moments – $3 low-ask
Devin Booker (Phoenix Suns): 16 Moments – $8 low-ask
Kevin Durant (Brooklyn Nets): 9 Moments – $9 low-ask
Jerami Grant (Detroit Pistons): 9 Moments – $4 low-ask
Draymond Green (Golden State Warriors): 7 Moments – $4 low-ask
Jrue Holiday (Milwaukee Bucks): 13 Moments – $6 low-ask
Zach LaVine (Chicago Bulls): 16 Moments – $4 low-ask
Damian Lillard (Portland Trailblazers): 17 Moments – $5 low-ask
JaVale McGee (Denver Nuggets): 5 Moments – $4 low-ask
Khris Middleton (Milwaukee Bucks): 14 Moments – $6 low-ask
Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics): 20 Moments – $5 low-ask
Keldon Johnson (San Antonio Spurs): 5 Moments – $25 low-ask
Team USA Schedule
Sun. July 25, 8:00 a.m. EST vs. France
Wed. July 28 12:40 a.m. EST vs. Iran
Sat. July 31 8:00 a.m. EST vs. Czech Republic
Team Argentina
Facundo Campazzo (Denver Nuggets): 5 Moments – $4 low-ask
Team Argentina Schedule
Mon. July 26, 12:40 a.m. EST vs. Slovenia
Thur. July 29, 8:00 a.m. EST vs. Spain
Sun. August 1, 12:40 a.m. EST vs Japan
Team Australia
Patty Mills (San Antonio Spurs): 4 Moments – $4 low-ask
Joe Ingles (Utah Jazz): 4 Moments – $3 low-ask
Aron Baynes (Toronto Raptors): 1 Moment – $8 low-ask
Josh Green (Dallas Mavericks): 1 Moment – $24 low-ask
Matisse Thybulle (Philadelphia 76ers): 6 Moments – $3 low-ask
Team Australia Schedule
Sun. July 25, 4:20 a.m. EST vs. Nigeria
Wed. July 28, 4:20 a.m. EST vs. Italy
Sat. July 31, 4:20 a.m. EST vs German
Team Czech Republic
Tomas Satoransky (Chicago Bulls): 5 Moments – $4 low-ask
Team Czech Republic Schedule
Sat. July 24, 9:00 p.m. EST vs. Iran
Wed. July 28, 8:00 a.m. EST vs. France
Sat. July 31, 8:00 a.m. EST vs USA
Team France
Rudy Gobert (Utah Jazz): 15 Moments – $4 low-ask
Nicolas Batum (Los Angeles Clippers): 2 Moments – $5 low-ask
Evan Fournier (Boston Celtics): 3 Moments – $4 low-ask
Team France Schedule
Sun. July 25, 8:00 a.m. EST vs. USA
Wed. July 28, 8:00 a.m. EST vs. Czech Republic
Fri. July 30, 9:00 p.m. EST vs Iran
Team Germany
Moritz Wagner (Orlando Magic): 2 Moments – $37 low-ask
Isaac Bonga (Washington Wizards): 1 Moment – $7 low-ask
Team Germany Schedule
Sun. July 25, 12:40 a.m. EST vs. Italy
Tue. July 27, 9:00 p.m. EST vs. Nigeria
Sat. July 31, 4:20 a.m. EST vs Australia
Team Iran
No NBA Players with Top Shot Moments
Team Iran Schedule
Sat. July 24, 9:00 p.m. EST vs. Czech Republic
Wed. July 28, 12:40 a.m. EST vs. USA
Fri. July 30, 9:00 p.m. EST vs France
Team Italy
Nico Mannion (Golden State Warriors): 1 Moment – $64 low-ask
Danillo Gallinari (Atlanta Hawks): 6 Moments – $3 low-ask
Team Italy Schedule
Sun. July 25, 12:40 a.m. EST vs. Germany
Wed. July 28, 4:20 a.m. EST vs. Australia
Sat. July 31, 12:40 a.m. EST vs Nigeria
Team Japan
Rui Hachimura (Washington Wizards): 12 Moments – $4 low-ask
Yuta Watanabe (Toronto Raptors): 1 Moment – $10 low-ask
Team Japan Schedule
Mon. July 26, 8:00 a.m. EST vs. Spain
Thurs. July 29, 12:40 a.m. EST vs. Slovenia
Sun. Aug 1, 12:40 a.m. EST vs Argentina
Team Nigeria
Josh Okogie (Minnesota Timberwolves): 4 Moments – $5 low-ask
Precious Achiuwa (Miami Heat): 3 Moments – $4 low-ask
KZ Okpala (Miami Heat): 1 Moment – $7 low-ask
Chimeze Metu (Sacramento Kings): 2 Moments – $8 low-ask
Jordan Nwora (Milwaukee Bucks): 1 Moment – $125 low-ask
Team Nigeria Schedule
Sun. July 25, 4:20 a.m. EST vs. Australia
Tues. July 27, 9:00 p.m. EST vs. Germany
Sat. Jul 31, 12:40 a.m. EST vs. Italy
Team Slovenia
Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks): 16 Moments – $11 low-ask
Team Slovenia Schedule
Mon. July 26, 12:40 a.m. EST vs. Argentina
Thurs. July 29, 12:40 p.m. EST vs. Japan
Sun. Aug 1, 4:20 a.m. EST vs. Spain
Team Spain
Marc Gasol (Los Angeles Lakers): 2 Moments – $4 low-ask
Ricky Rubio (Minnesota Timberwolves): 4 Moments – $5 low-ask
Team Spain Schedule
Mon. July 26, 8:00 a.m. EST vs. Japan
Thurs. July 29, 8:00 p.m. EST vs. Argentina
Sus. Aug 1, 4:20 a.m. EST vs. Slovenia
Nigeria’s Jordan Nwora and his Three Star rookie Moment became the first to have five badges on Top Shot when the Bucks won the Finals, and it’s now selling for $125 with the badges added. However, most players have reasonably cheap Top Shot Moments available to purchase on the marketplace.
Keldon Johnson and JaVale McGee have already contributed to Team USA after replacing Bradley Beal and Kevin Love on the roster. Rui Hachimura will be a focal point of Japan’s basketball team and also the country’s flag bearer during the opening ceremonies of the Olympics. Will this international exposure bump up the price of these NBA players’ Top Shot Moments? Will some players be the bottlenecks in Olympic quests?
We’ll have to wait to see.
Who will win the Men’s Basketball Gold Medal?
Despite early struggles, Team USA is still the heavy favorite to take home gold at -400. As shown in the preliminary games, Nigeria (+3500) and Australia (+900) are extremely talented and hungry for Olympic glory. Don’t be shocked if Rudy Gobert’s France team (+1900) or Marc Gasol’s Spain team (+1100) steals a spot in the gold medal game either.
Even without fans, this should be a very exciting two weeks of spectacular international basketball Moments, with some Top Shot action to go along with it.