Aug 8, 2024; Paris, France; United States guard LeBron James (6) celebrates with guard Kevin Durant (7) during the first half in a men’s basketball semifinal game during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Accor Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports

Former WNBA star and Basketball Hall of Famer Lisa Leslie said it best: The goal is gold.

That’s what Leslie posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, on Thursday after the United States rallied from a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat Serbia in the semifinals of the men’s basketball tournament at the Paris Olympics.

Now the Americans will be going for their 17th gold medal in team history on Saturday, giving us one more chance to bet on Stephen Curry, LeBron James and the rest of the star-studded roster.

Without neglecting a full slate of baseball, here are three picks to start your weekend off right:

United States at France Olympic Gold Medal Game

We’ve seen this one before.

Team USA and the French met in the gold medal game at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics (held in 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic), and the Americans came away with an 87-82 victory.

It was the third time the United States and France have met in an Olympic final, but we’ll ignore the other two instances, considering one was in 2000 and the other (1948) came just after World War II ended.

While the Americans had the best point differential (plus-64) of any team in group play and rolled over Brazil in the quarterfinals, they really struggled against the Serbians before Curry and James came to the rescue.

All signs are pointing toward the U.S. taking this one, but with home-court advantage and the potential to land their first Olympic gold, the French should at least be able to prevent a blowout.

The pick: France spread +16, -108 (FanDuel)

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Los Angeles Angels at Washington Nationals

Only six pitchers in the big leagues have given up more homers than Los Angeles right-hander Griffin Canning this season.

So, who is clearing the wall for Washington on Saturday?

Let’s go with CJ Abrams.

Fourteen of Abrams’ 17 home runs this year have come against righties, while 12 of the long balls Canning has allowed have come off the bats of left-handed hitters like Abrams.

Back spasms kept Abrams out of the lineup on Friday, so expect him to come back with some vengeance on Saturday. He is currently listed as day-to-day.

The pick: CJ Abrams to hit a home run, +390 (DraftKings)

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Atlanta Braves at Colorado Rockies

Atlanta has really come back down to earth since winning the World Series three years ago, to say the least.

The Braves have been eliminated in the National League Division Series in back-to-back seasons, falling 3-1 each time. Now they find themselves sitting at 60-55, good for third in the NL East, and have dropped six straight games.

But if there’s any pitcher to break out of a rut against, it’s Colorado right-hander Dakota Hudson.

Hudson has been shelled in his first season with the Rockies, posting a 5.84 ERA. He is also tied for the major league lead with 12 losses despite not taking the mound for Colorado since July 3 because of a demotion to Triple-A Albuquerque.

Feel free to go Atlanta moneyline here, but we’re opting to take the juicer odds.

The pick: Braves spread -1.5, -128 (FanDuel)