Team USA Basketball Thread - 2012 London Olympic Games

[casmith07]

Coach K put in all the scrubs with little time left and they almost managed to lose the game while everyone was prematurely celebrating off court...wow. If Hardin had not split those last four free throws and missed them all, who knows? But congratulations to them, what a game!

James Harden never should've been on this team. Should've had Hibbert.

 

[Phoenix]

The Russians were just soooo happy with their Bronze, that was great to see. Somewhere Manu is still seething :laugh2:

 

[Cowboys&LakersFan]

James Harden never should've been on this team. Should've had Hibbert.

Yeah we really needed another big. It's a shame Dwight couldn't play due to his back injury. I don't think people realize just how banged up we were. That's what makes it such a great accomplishment. So proud of these guys. Not gonna lie nearly shed tears a few moments ago. Seeing them raise that flag, play the National Anthem, and watch all these guys get a Gold Medal gives ne goosebumps.

 

[DasTex]

Yeah we really needed another big. It's a shame Dwight couldn't play due to his back injury. I don't think people realize just how banged up we were. That's what makes it such a great accomplishment. So proud of these guys. Not gonna lie nearly shed tears a few moments ago. Seeing them raise that flag, play the National Anthem, and watch all these guys get a Gold Medal gives ne goosebumps.

I'm sorry, but it's not a huge accomplishment when the best player on every team they played wouldn't even had made Team USA (except maybe Manu).

They did what they should do every Olympics since they let NBA players in. Win gold. I guess watching some of the self absorbed players on that team make it really hard to get excited in winning. See Russia, that was pretty cool.m

 

[Manwiththeplan]

I'm sorry, but it's not a huge accomplishment when the best player on every team they played wouldn't even had made Team USA (except maybe Manu).

They did what they should do every Olympics since they let NBA players in. Win gold. I guess watching some of the self absorbed players on that team make it really hard to get excited in winning. See Russia, that was pretty cool.m

you're right, because every sports team reaches their potential and does what they're supposed to do

 

[casmith07]

Yeah we really needed another big. It's a shame Dwight couldn't play due to his back injury. I don't think people realize just how banged up we were. That's what makes it such a great accomplishment. So proud of these guys. Not gonna lie nearly shed tears a few moments ago. Seeing them raise that flag, play the National Anthem, and watch all these guys get a Gold Medal gives ne goosebumps.

I fight back tears every time our anthem is played like that.

 

[casmith07]

I'm sorry, but it's not a huge accomplishment when the best player on every team they played wouldn't even had made Team USA (except maybe Manu).

They did what they should do every Olympics since they let NBA players in. Win gold. I guess watching some of the self absorbed players on that team make it really hard to get excited in winning. See Russia, that was pretty cool.m

Your user name is ironically fitting of your opinion.

 

[Cowboys&LakersFan]

Your user name is ironically fitting of your opinion.

:laugh2:

 

[Reality]

Team USA learned a hard lesson 3 Olympics ago when they took a team of individuals to the Olympics and got embarrassed. There's no way a selfish team could medal any more because international competition has improved so much in the last decade.

I really wish Team USA would play more defense and we were definitely hurting height-wise with this team, but they did play as a team just like they did in Beijing and it is hard not to respect that. That's exactly how team-based sports are supposed to be represented in the Olympics.

#reality

 

[DasTex]

Your user name is ironically fitting of your opinion.

I get emotional every time any member of the US team medals and especially during the anthem.

The basketball team loaded full of the worlds best talent winning and beating teams by 80 points just doesn't do it for me.

The best part of that team is Coach K for me.

Oh, and thanks for the play off my user name....your so clever

 

[Romo_To_Dez]

Glad that we came away with the win and the Refs for this game got on my nerves calling any and everything.

How many players were in Foul trouble because of them?

 

[Doomsday]

The Russians were just soooo happy with their Bronze, that was great to see. Somewhere Manu is still seething :laugh2:

Yes, that was awesome to see. To me that is what the Olympics is all about. The shot of them wearing the signs that were on the chairs that read "Reserved for bronze medal team" was cool.

 

[casmith07]

I get emotional every time any member of the US team medals and especially during the anthem.

The basketball team loaded full of the worlds best talent winning and beating teams by 80 points just doesn't do it for me.

The best part of that team is Coach K for me.

Oh, and thanks for the play off my user name....your so clever

You're welcome.

 

[joseephuss]

Team USA learned a hard lesson 3 Olympics ago when they took a team of individuals to the Olympics and got embarrassed. There's no way a selfish team could medal any more because international competition has improved so much in the last decade.

I really wish Team USA would play more defense and we were definitely hurting height-wise with this team, but they did play as a team just like they did in Beijing and it is hard not to respect that. That's exactly how team-based sports are supposed to be represented in the Olympics.

#reality

They play good defense when it really matters. After giving up 58 in the first half, they held Spain to only 42 in the second half. And only 18 in the 4th quarter. With 1 minute left to go in the 4th Spain only had scored 11 points. They got their other 7 points in trash time. Everyone knew Spain would have the height advantage and the US made the necessary adjustments to counter that when it really mattered. As you said, that falls right into that team concept.

 

[Phoenix]

They play good defense when it really matters. After giving up 58 in the first half, they held Spain to only 42 in the second half. And only 18 in the 4th quarter. With 1 minute left to go in the 4th Spain only had scored 11 points. They got their other 7 points in trash time. Everyone knew Spain would have the height advantage and the US made the necessary adjustments to counter that when it really mattered. As you said, that falls right into that team concept.

As noted by the coach on the broadcast, Spain also did a fantastic job of stopping fast breaks by fouling. That was really clever of them I thought, and it almost worked for them.

 

[joseephuss]

As noted by the coach on the broadcast, Spain also did a fantastic job of stopping fast breaks by fouling. That was really clever of them I thought, and it almost worked for them.

Yes, that was a smart move on their part.

The discussion with Doc Rivers, Al Michaels and Dan Patrick after the game was who should be the next coach. Doc said he would love to, but he thinks Popovich should get heavy consideration to be the next coach. They also all talked about Doug Collins should be in the running to get the gig because of his ties to the 1972 team. Hate that idea. I don't think Collins is even an average coach.

 

[mldardy]

Yes, that was a smart move on their part.

The discussion with Doc Rivers, Al Michaels and Dan Patrick after the game was who should be the next coach. Doc said he would love to, but he thinks Popovich should get heavy consideration to be the next coach. They also all talked about Doug Collins should be in the running to get the gig because of his ties to the 1972 team. Hate that idea. I don't think Collins is even an average coach.

He certainly isn't a below average coach. No he doesn't have a championship but to say he's not even an average coach is silly. A coach with a .532 winning percentage isn't below average. He's pretty good at turning teams around that have been down. Getting to that next level(championship level) has been the only thing he hasn't done as a coach. I think if he isn't head coach of the next Olympic team they should at least make him apart of the coaching staff.

 

[joseephuss]

He certainly isn't a below average coach. No he doesn't have a championship but to say he's not even an average coach is silly. A coach with a .532 winning percentage isn't below average. He's pretty good at turning teams around that have been down. Getting to that next level(championship level) has been the only thing he hasn't done as a coach. I think if he isn't head coach of the next Olympic team they should at least make him apart of the coaching staff.

Well let's just call him average then. He has a 0.431 winning percentage in the playoffs. He would be fine as an assistant, but I don't think he would make a good head coach for the Olympic team. The whole point of that position is to get the team to the next level.

 

[MC KAos]

Q: Why haven't you taken the time to sit down and thoroughly dissect the chances of the 2012 Olympic team beating the 1992 team? Isn't it tempting? Kobe vs. Jordan, LeBron vs. everyone else, even the two college kids and who impacted the team more! I need someone with real basketball knowledge to tackle this, not talking heads.
— Melvin, Boston

SG: Melvin, your effective guilt trip shamed me into a response. 1992 vs. 2012 … hmmmmm … sounds like the perfect topic for our second Dr. Jack Breakdown of the month!

U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!

Grantland on the 2012 Summer Olympics

Team USA madness, profiles of the most fascinating athletes, and on-the-ground reporting from Bill Simmons.
WHICH TEAM WAS MICHAEL JORDAN ON?

The original Dream Team featured the greatest basketball player of all time at his absolute mega-apex. To be clear, "mega-apex" isn't a word. You can't have a mega-apex. In the summer of 1992, however, Jordan was experiencing a mega-apex. Nobody has ever been better at basketball than Michael Jordan in 1992 — he submitted the rich man's version of the year LeBron just wrapped up (right down to the hardware). He also happened to be homicidally competitive, quite possibly the most ruthless athlete in the history of team sports. Jordan loved beating people so much that he couldn't stop doing it. He had to beat people at everything: golf, poker, half-court shots, even whose bag came out first in baggage claim.

So if we're having a hypothetical "1992 vs. 2012" conversation, that means we're convening the Dream Team in August of 1992 and telling them, "Hey, fellas? We just built you a time machine. We're traveling 20 years into the future so you can play America's 2012 team — these guys are really good; more than a few people even think they can beat you guys."

That's when 1992 Michael tries to fight off a sarcastic smirk and says, "Really? I'd love to hear more. Tell me a little about these guys."

"Well, they have someone named LeBron who's the best basketball player since you. They have someone named Durant who's an even better shooter than Bird in his prime. They have a guy named Kobe who's probably the best 2-guard since you — he's near the end of his career, though. Their point guards are really good. They have incredible outside shooting — the 3-point line is too short for them. And they're extremely athletic."

That's when Michael says, "Sounds interesting. Who are their centers?"

"Well, that's their weak spot — they don't really have any centers. They don't have a low-post game at all. Or anyone to protect the rim. They basically play small ball and shoot 3s."

And that's when Michael starts laughing, asks for directions to the time machine, and wonders aloud if his golf clubs will make it through time travel. So much for our Dr. Jack Breakdown.