The USA Basketball National Team’s exhibition games will be live streamed on Facebook.
Verizon is sponsoring the games, which will appear on the USA Basketball and NBA Facebook pages beginning Friday when the USA men’s team tips off against Argentina at 9 p.m. ET.
The games are warmups for the Olympics, where both the USA men's team and the women's are favored.
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The games are also being televised on NBA TV, but the move is a significant first for Facebook as live sports move to digital and social media.
Twitter and Yahoo have also been aggressive in picking up rights to NBA and NFL action. NBC is streaming most Olympic events.
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Led by head coach Mike Krzyzewski, the 2016 USA Men’s National Team roster includes Carmelo Anthony, Harrison Barnes, Jimmy Butler, DeMarcus Cousins, DeMar DeRozan, Kevin Durant, Paul George, Draymond Green, Kyrie Irving, DeAndre Jordan, Kyle Lowry and Klay Thompson.
The women’s team includes Seimone Augustus, Sue Bird, Tamika Catchings, Tina Charles, Elena Delle Donne, Sylvia Fowles, Brittney Griner, Angel McCoughtry, Maya Moore, Breanna Stewart, Diana Taurasi and Lindsay Whalen. They are coached by Geno Auriemma.
