Daniel Theis, center of the New Orleans Pelicans, and the German Olympic team will not win a medal at this year’s Summer Games. They lost the Olympic Games bronze medal 93-83. Theis struggled throughout the game and scored only 2 points in 15 minutes of play.
Serbia’s Nikola Jokic proved why he is a three-time NBA MVP, recording just the fifth triple-double in Olympic history, scoring 19 points, grabbing 12 rebounds and dishing out 11 assists. Jokic’s triple-double comes just two days after LeBron James recorded the fourth triple-double in Olympic history against Serbia. The U.S. team won 95-91 and advanced to the gold medal game against France.
After a strong 4-0 start by the German team, Theis struggled in the last two games against France and Serbia. The size of the opposing team bothered the underperforming Theis, especially against Jokic. With the last two losses, Germany now leaves Paris without a medal after winning the FIBA World Championship last summer for the first time in the country’s history.
Theis played a major role in Germany’s success last year.
The German-born forward led an upset victory for the Americans in the semifinals last year, scoring 21 points and shooting +26 from the field, which was a game-best mark. Theis was the team’s best rebounder and his solid defense helped stabilize the German infield.
Fourth place for Germany is the country’s best result in the history of Olympic basketball. Now Theis will return to prepare for the upcoming NBA season with the Pelicans. New Orleans signed him for a year in July to add depth to the weakened frontcourt.
The team traded Jonas Valanciunas, Cody Zeller and Larry Nance Jr. this offseason. New Orleans spent its first-round pick on former Baylor center Yves Missi. He is considered a longer-term project because he only has three years of organized basketball under his belt. Theis is expected to play a major role for the Pelicans this season.
In his seven-year career in the league, he has started 151 games. Theis averaged 7.4 points and 4.8 rebounds. His most productive season was 2019, when he started 64 regular-season games for the Celtics and all 17 playoff games.
This NBA season was canceled early due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Games resumed in a bubble to protect players. The Celtics lost 4-2 to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals. He will now try to help the Pelicans advance past the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 2018.
