"Iron Man assembling the Avengers" - NBA fans react to LeBron James recruiting Kevin Durant, Steph Curry and other superstars for 2024 Paris Olympics

After Team USA's disappointing fourth-place finish at the 2023 FIBA World Cup, LeBron James has reportedly begun recruiting other superstars for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Fans on social media were quick to react, and some even compared it to a popular movie franchise.

According to Shams Charania and Joe Vardon of The Athletic, "The King" is interested in playing for the national team next year. He reportedly started calling other NBA superstars like Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, Draymond Green and Jayson Tatum.

Damian Lillard, Kyrie Irving, Devin Booker and De'Aaron Fox are all interested in playing for Team USA, while Anthony Edwards and Mikal Bridgers are not deterred by the team's World Cup failures. Bam Adebayo and Desmond Bane, who were almost chosen for the World Cup, are also open to playing for their country in Paris.

Fans on social media were divided on their response to The Athletic's report about LeBron James wanting to represent Team USA for the first time since 2012. Steph Curry has never played at the Olympics while Kevin Durant was the team's best player in Tokyo two years ago.

A fan compared James' recruitment of Curry and Durant to Iron Man assembling the Earth's mightiest heroes:

"Iron Man assembling the Avengers."

Another fan pointed out Noah Lyles' "World Champions of What" remarks as a breaking point for Team USA:

"Thank you, Noah Lyles."

Another fan went the other way and took a shot at Austin Reaves, who was one of Team USA's best players at the FIBA World Cup:

"Better than Austin Reaves on the team."

Here are the other reactions and memes about the report:

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LeBron James has not played for Team USA since 2012

LeBron James at the 2012 London Olympics

LeBron James has played for Team USA in three Olympics: 2004, 2008 and 2012. It has been more than a decade since he last represented his country on the international stage. However, with the rest of the world catching up with the Americans, James is interested in having one last run with the national team.

"The King" has a bronze medal and two gold medals in his Olympic career. He remains one of the best players in the world despite his age. However, he will be 39 next year and all the mileage in his body over the last 20 years.

He has also been injury-prone since joining the LA Lakers, so he has had wear-and-tear on his body.

Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see if James and other NBA superstars will fully commit next year. Telling people about the desire to play next year is much different from making the decision after a long, grueling season a few months before the Paris Olympics.