USA National Team 2012 Olympics

[CKR13]

Dwyane Wade stated again that this is the last Olympics for him.

2012 to be Dwyane Wade's last Olympics

[CKR13]

USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo said last week that between 18-20 finalists for the final Olympic 12-man roster will be named late this January.

[kgi]

If I was Coach K here's what my squad would look like -

Starting Five -

PG - Derrick Rose
SG - Dwayne Wade
SF - Lebron James
PF - Chris Bosh
C - Dwight Howard

Bench -

Chris Paul
Blake Griffin
Brandon Roy
Kevin Durant
Brook Lopez
Carmelo Anthony
Amar'e Stoudemire

where is kobe?
:>

[CKR13]

January 18, 2012 is the target date wherein the player pool for the United States Basketball National Team intended for the London 2012 Olympics is to be named.

U.S. roster pool to be announced

NEW YORK -- Jerry Colangelo has been speaking to the best American basketball players, asking if they still want to play in the Olympics.

All of them say they do.

The next step is seeing which ones will have the chance.

USA Basketball plans to announce the 18 players who will be candidates for the Olympic team by the middle of this month, Colangelo said Friday.

From LeBron James to Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant to Derrick Rose, players from the 2008 Olympic champions and 2010 world champions could make up a formidable U.S. squad that should head to London as the overwhelming favorite.

"We have so much talent right now, the pool is extraordinary," Colangelo said.

The final 12-man roster and six alternates must be submitted June 18, before the NBA finals will be complete. But all 18 names have to be given to the U.S. Olympic Committee by the end of January to be placed in the drug program.

Colangelo said the announcement will be made by Jan. 18. He has spent the last few days reaching out to the players' agents, and about the half the players themselves, and all of them reconfirmed their interest in playing.

Quite a difference from the state of U.S. basketball when Colangelo took over in 2005, when the U.S. couldn't find enough players who cared to keep their commitments to play in previous year's Olympics.

"That's behind us now," he said. "We've created a situation where players now desire to be a part of it and so now we have a different set of issues. Now we have more players than a roster can call for."

The roster will be a mixture of the gold medalists from Beijing, and the one that ended the U.S. drought in the world championship with an entirely different roster.

The strength remains the point guards, including Rose, Chris Paul, Deron Williams and Russell Westbrook; and wing players that include the likes of James, Durant, and Carmelo Anthony.

But Colangelo said he will also consider teams the U.S. would have to match up with, mentioning Spain and Brazil among them. Both have quality big men, meaning players such as Kevin Love and Tyson Chandler could get stronger consideration as possible backups to Dwight Howard.

"There's a lot of considerations before we get to the 12, and the good news is all we have to deal with is 18 right now," Colangelo said. "And I think within our group, that group, we have a lot of flexibility and we'll make that determination as best we can come June."

Colangelo has told all the players that for now they are only guaranteed to be part of the final 18.

The biggest challenge facing the Americans, like most countries, could be the schedule. With the lockout meaning the NBA finals could end as late as June 26, there will be no ability to have a tryout camp, and little more than a week before the team has to report to training camp in Las Vegas on July 5. Colangelo said the team will be sensitive those players who had lengthy playoff runs, which could mean extra rest for James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh if Miami gets back to the finals.

"We're preparing as best we can and we will be there's nothing that we will not have prepared for," Colangelo said.

He's also been planning the pre-Olympic schedule, which is expected to send the Americans to Washington and then Barcelona, along with the one exhibition game that has already been announced against Britain in Manchester, England.

"We're really kind of in the homestretch for us as we prepare," Colangelo said.

- ESPN

[CKR13]

It is reported that Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin is being considered in the pool of national players.

Griffin Being Considered for 2012 Olympics

[CKR13]

Portland Trailblazers forward Lamarcus Aldridge is interested in playing for Team USA in the London Olympics.

Hopefully, Aldridge will be among the names in the player pool.

Aldridge Hopes to Play for Team USA

[Chuck Diesel]

My preferred 2012 Olympic Roster-

Chris Paul, Derrick Rose
Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Eric Gordon
Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony
Lebron James, Kevin Love, Blake Griffin
Dwight Howard, Andrew Bynum

[CKR13]

Philadelphia 76ers forward Andre Iguodala is said to be included in the 18 man pool for the National Team. Iguodala was a member of the gold winning Team USA Squad that competed in the 2010 World Championships in Turkey.

76ers F Andre Iguodala a candidate for Team USA

[BrokeJumper]

My 2012 Olympic Team Lineup

Starting Five -

PG - Chris Paul
SG - Kobe Bryant
SF - Kevin Durant
PF - Blake Griffin
C - Dwight Howard

Bench -
Derrick Rose
Lebron James
Kevin Love
Dwyane Wade
Carmelo Anthony
LaMarcus Aldridge
Ray Allen

Alternates:

Rajon Rondo
Monta Ellis
Russell Westbrook
Ryan Anderson
James Harden
David Lee
DeMarcus Cousins
Al Jefferson
John Wall

[CKR13]

Chris Sheridan claimed from his sources that the 2012 USA Basketball National Team is as follows:

LaMarcus Aldridge
Carmelo Anthony
Chauncey Billups
Chris Bosh
Kobe Bryant
Tyson Chandler
Kevin Durant
Eric Gordon
Blake Griffin
Dwight Howard
Andre Iguodala
LeBron James
Kevin Love
Lamar Odom
Chris Paul
Derrick Rose
Dwyane Wade
Russell Westbrook
Deron Williams

[CKR13]

It is reported that the national pool of players will contain 20 names. USA Basketball will name the twenty players this morning.

[bukefalos]

This is the best team I have ever seen. (in 92' I'm 8 years old)
They will easily win the olmypics like 2010 world championship

maybe a great zone defence causes some problems but;
starting 5 like

Chris Paul
Kobe
Durant
Love
Howard

is the best answer

They can shoot from everywhere
Biggest disadvantage of zone defence is Def. Rebounds.
Love and howard are the best solution in entire world. They are beast of grabbing offensive rebounds.

[Raze Lupin]

This is the best team I have ever seen. (in 92' I'm 8 years old)
They will easily win the olmypics like 2010 world championship

maybe a great zone defence causes some problems but;
starting 5 like

Chris Paul
Kobe
Durant
Love
Howard

is the best answer

They can shoot from everywhere
Biggest disadvantage of zone defence is Def. Rebounds.
Love and howard are the best solution in entire world. They are beast of grabbing offensive rebounds.

I agree bro!! That sounds like a good starting 5.

[Raze Lupin]

I CAN"T WAIT FOR THE ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!!!

[Raze Lupin]

ITS OFFICIAL!! http://www.usabasketball.com/mens/na...Finalists.html

Twenty Finalists Selected For 2012 U.S. Olympic Men’s Team

After seeing his USA teams win gold at the 2008 Olympics and 2010 World Championship, Coach K in the summer of 2012 will be looking to lead the U.S. to a second consecutive Olympic gold medal.
Garrett Ellwood/NBAE/Getty Images
January 16, 2012 • Colorado Springs, Colo.


• 2012 U.S. Olympic Men's Team Finalists Roster
• 2012 Olympics - Just The Facts
Eight 2008 Olympic gold medalists, 10 members of the 2010 USA World Championship gold medal winning team, one national team player and one newcomer to the USA Basketball National Team were among the 20 finalists named today for the 2012 U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team by USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo. The official 12-man U.S. Olympic team roster will be announced later this year.

Named as a finalist for the 2012 USA team were: LaMarcus Aldridge (Portland Trail Blazers); Carmelo Anthony (New York Knicks); Chauncey Billups (Los Angeles Clippers); Chris Bosh (Miami Heat); Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers); Tyson Chandler (New York Knicks); Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City Thunder); Rudy Gay (Memphis Grizzlies); Eric Gordon (New Orleans Hornets); Blake Griffin (Los Angeles Clippers); Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic); Andre Iguodala (Philadelphia 76ers); LeBron James (Miami Heat); Kevin Love (Minnesota Timberwolves); Lamar Odom (Dallas Mavericks); Chris Paul (Los Angeles Clippers); Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls); Dwyane Wade (Miami Heat); Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder); and Deron Williams (New Jersey Nets). Griffin was also officially added to the USA Basketball National Team roster.

The 2012 USA coaching staff is led by Duke University’s Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski, and serving as USA assistant coaches are Syracuse University’s Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim, New York Knicks head coach Mike D’Antoni, and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Nate McMillan.

“The USA Basketball Men’s National Team program has come a long way as the elite list of players who are now part of our program shows. The selected finalists are a very, very talented group; the depth of the talent is extraordinary. This selection decision was as difficult of a challenge as I’ve faced since I took on the USA National Team program in 2005,” said Colangelo, who has served as the managing director of the USA Men’s National Team since 2005.

“I feel like we have an outstanding blend of talents from the 2008 Olympic and 2010 World Championship teams that won gold. Reducing to the official roster limit of 12 players will be an even tougher decision, but we’ll evaluate how guys play during the 2011-12 NBA season and as we’ve done with our teams in the past, we’ll attempt to select the very best team we can.”

“Jerry has built an extremely deep and talented USA National Team roster of 35 players and I want to thank each player for their incredible commitment to being part of USA Basketball. Reducing to 20 players was unbelievably difficult,” stated Krzyzewski, who has coached USA National Teams to a sterling 48-1 record since 2006.

“Aside from the obvious special basketball talents that all of these players possess, what struck me most about the finalists was their commitment to USA Basketball and the international basketball experience they have compiled. Among our 20 finalists, we have two players who possess 55 or more games of international experience, two with 40 or more international games under their belts and eight others who have played between 23 and 38 international games – that’s a lot of experience, which is going to be extremely valuable.

“These players have helped restore the winning tradition of USA Basketball while also gaining the respect of people around the world for the manner in which they have done it,” added Krzyzewski.

Three of the finalists are two-time Olympic medalists, including Anthony (2004 bronze and 2008 gold), James (2004 bronze and 2008 gold) and Wade (2004 bronze and 2008 gold).

Eight of the selected finalists were members of the 2008 U.S. Olympic team that compiled an unblemished record of 8-0 and captured gold in Beijing, including Anthony, Bosh, Bryant, Howard, James, Paul, Wade and Williams. Four finalists – Anthony, James, Odom and Wade - were part of the 2004 U.S. Olympic team that earned the bronze medal.

Ten finalists were members of the 2010 USA World Championship squad that went 9-0 and captured gold in Istanbul, Turkey. Billups, Chandler, World Championship MVP Durant, Gay, Gordon, Iguodala, Love, Odom, Rose and Westbrook were all members of the USA World Championship Team.

The finalists represent 14 different NBA teams, with the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Clippers leading the way with three players each; while the New York Knicks and Oklahoma City Thunder each have two players among the 20; and the Chicago Bulls, Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers, Memphis Grizzlies, Minnesota Timberwolves, New Jersey Nets, New Orleans Hornets, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers and Portland Trail Blazers each are represented by one player.

Eighteen of the finalists possess impressive international experience with Anthony leading the way with 59 games of international experience. He is followed by James (55), Williams (47), Wade (40), Howard (38), Paul (37), Bosh (32), Billups (30), Odom (28), Chandler (25), Bryant (24), Gay (23), Durant (17), Iguodala (16), Rose (16), Gordon (15), Love (15) and Westbrook (15). Aldridge, who was a member of the 2008 USA Select Team that trained against the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team, and Griffin, who is the youngest finalist at 22-years-old, have not played in an international game.

The USA’s complete training schedule will be released at a later date.

2012 London Olympic Games
The 2012 Summer Olympic Games will be held July 27-Aug. 12 in London, England. Twelve teams will compete in the 2012 Olympic men’s basketball competition. Nations currently qualified for the Olympic competition include Great Britain, the host country; the United States, which earned its berth by virtue of claiming the gold medal at the 2010 FIBA World Championship; Africa zone champ Tunisia; Americas zone champion Argentina and runner-up Brazil; Asia zone winner China; European zone gold medalist Spain and silver medalist France; and Oceania zone champion Australia.

The remaining three Olympic qualifying spots will be determined through the 2012 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament that will be held July 2-8, 2012, in Caracas, Venezuela. The Olympic qualifier will feature 12 nations from each of the five 2011 FIBA zone qualifying tournaments including: Angola and Nigeria from FIBA Africa; the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Venezuela from FIBA Americas (bronze medalist through fifth-place finishers); Jordan and South Korea from FIBA Asia (silver and bronze medalists); Russia, F.Y.R. of Macedonia, Lithuania and Greece from FIBA Europe (bronze medalists through sixth place finishers); and New Zealand from FIBA Oceania.

Preliminary play at the ’12 Olympics will be held July 29-Aug. 6, with quarterfinals play scheduled for Aug. 8, semifinals on Aug. 10 and the finals is slated for Aug. 12.

The U.S. men have collected a medal in all 16 Olympics in which they have competed, including 13 golds, one silver and two bronze. The Americans own an impressive 122-5 overall win-loss record (.961 winning percentage) in Olympic action, and since NBA players began representing the United States in 1992, the USA is 37-3 in the five Olympics they have participated in, capturing four gold medals and one bronze medal.

COME AT US BRO!!!!