2008 US National Team

[Phantim3dx]

sloan is a no nonsense damn the torpedoes full speed ahead type of guy. ive always wondered what their practice sessions are and how he gets guys like korver, milsap, d wil, boozer, and the euro gangs to playa nd foul hard.

[Alex07]

Tall firepower

There's not enough Choices on the Power Forward and Center position..USA will be undersized.The tallest would be Dwight Howard at 6'11.I hope they could include guys like Bosh,Duncan or Even Kevin Garnett(just hoping )..I'd be very happy to see some young guys on the squad like Kevin Durant(Le Bron's reliever) and Greg Oden (if healthy)..But I guess they had made their choices already.

[Nikoo]

^^^
Chandler is a legit 7 footer

[mvblair]

Chandler is a legit 7 footer

You're right, but Chandler is also a very skinny, very weak center. He'll get hurt by some of the bigger, tougher centers in international play.

[L8DBACK]

You're right, but Chandler is also a very skinny, very weak center. He'll get hurt by some of the bigger, tougher centers in international play.

I think the outside shooting is a must fot the USA squad, knocking in those
3's! It was the outside shooting that help the USA team in the Tournament of Americas. I rather keep USA team intact from the last international competition with a few minor changes.

[L8DBACK]

There's not enough Choices on the Power Forward and Center position..USA will be undersized.The tallest would be Dwight Howard at 6'11.I hope they could include guys like Bosh,Duncan or Even Kevin Garnett(just hoping )..I'd be very happy to see some young guys on the squad like Kevin Durant(Le Bron's reliever) and Greg Oden (if healthy)..But I guess they had made their choices already.

That's an understatement! USA undersize? Come on you must be dreaming! Size does not equate to superiority but is how you play the game. Believe me they have enough talent, quickness, and size.

[mvblair]

I think the outside shooting is a must fot the USA squad, knocking in those
3's! It was the outside shooting that help the USA team in the Tournament of Americas. I rather keep USA team intact from the last international competition with a few minor changes.

You're right that we need shooting. We need shooting an playmaking. As long as we're running "isolations" that get double-teamed we'll lose. But I agree with Alex that we need to have somebody with a little more beef inside. Unfortunately, I can't really think of any good Americans that fit that bill right now. Maybe Brad Miller if he's still healthy, but he's lost a lot of his game recently. I guess Boozer is about the biggest guy who can defend that we have now that I think about it...

[Phantim3dx]

just put in curry, and z randolph, randolph morris from the new york knicks squad....those guys could be representatives of beefcake




BEEFCAKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
SAY IT WITH ME! BEEFCAKE!!!!

[basketball753]

It was very disappointing to see the US lost a couple of years ago. I think it would be very interesting to see what is going to happen this year. There should be some very good game this summer.

[theshooter]

Trend in the Dream Team?

To win on the international level, Team USA had to add a solid core of shooters. International players seem to be more fundamentally sound, therefore being better shooters. Who would you put on Team USA to shoot the ball?

[damelo]

Michael Redd is all right, and Mike Miller too, I think. As pure shooters. melo, Kobe can definitely shoot easily pull-ups at 6,25m, so they are all right.

[robbe]

Kobe Bryant last year stated that he - and other players who are used to have the ball in their hands most of the time and take a lot of shots (mostly off the dribble) - are "rhythm players" who have problems when having to play a smaller role and only once in a while can take a shot. An impression I always had about Team USA, who looked simply horrible when shooting the ball in international competition, even if they had players who were solid to good shooters on NBA level. Nice to have it confirmed by someone who surely knows about shooting.

I think with so many creators on the roster, Team USA desperately needs deadly catch-and-shoot type of players, but it somehow isn't happening. Why? I don't understand it. Maybe all the theories about the Nike, Adidas and the league itself having a strong influence and an interest that their biggest stars - not some unknown, unspectacular shooters - are presented on the Olympic stage are not far from the truth. I can't comment on it, I have no inside knowledge.

Jason Kapono would be a no-brainer for me. And more of them. Players who you bring into the game off the bench and bang - they hit the open three.

[Joško Poljak Fan]

agreed on that, I'd also add that get more guy used to set the others up. Imho a fundamental problem with NBA basketball is the over-specialisation of players role in the team, Kobe won't have to set screens to others in his club, just as majority of the guys that are normaly selected aren't used of doing that little things that don't show off with the statistics, but are priceless on court.

So imho it's not entirely "the shooters" bugging the US NT (although that Puerto Rico game in Athens immediately pops to my mind) but more of a fact superstars are allowed to play the game in their respective clubs which only works out with the right supporting cast and it's a bit harder having Carmelo, LeBron, Paul, Davis, Iverson and such players along them on court while you need the different type of player in the lineup instead of superstar... while in european basketball those roles aren't that divided and even if a player is one class below quality wise he still has a permision for a "wider ranged" game within the team and top players aren't expected to focus on individual tasks as often.

the old dream team's didn't have those troubles since players there earned their "superstar status" differently, more of through time and achievements and not entirely through the need of the team's owner to push some player forward to increase the sales a bit.
Reggie/Jordan/Drexler, Olajuwon/Ewing/Robinson/Shaq/Barkley, Stockton/Johnson/Dumars or Pippen/Bird/Johnson/Mullin were all superstars in the league, but you could easily distinguish some of their specific things they could do on court, each of them had some different strenghts that made the whole team more variable...
right now give me Carmelo, Bryant, McGrady, LeBron... all 4 of them more of less offer you almost the same skill set. Which is uncomparable with the variety which Pippen/Bird/Johnson/Mullin could offer combined in the good old dream team age, each of them providing a whole lot different things to the table...

just my perspective on the issue...

[Straight forward]

I can't realy remember much from 1992 olympics, but the fast brakes was amazing of that USA team. Interesting that even this advantage is quite rare in 2004-2007 USA team. Maybe, we should talk about the big improve by the rest of basketball world since then also. Tactics is big part of the game even if Lebronze and Melo don't like that. What comes to my mind when i remember 2006 USA team is the bunch of confident players who are so restricted and lost playing with each other. It was funny cause they tryed to be the same arrogant bastards as it was the old DREAM TEAM, but they looked so confused and impotents in the court. My question is- how many international competitions USA should lost that they would cut that supid "we are the kings of the world" attitude? As for they're horrible shooting in international arena- imho, they don't know how to prepare for these games, they come unprepared. More over, each of them don't feel comfortable being in one team with the best players of the league, we can see that on the court (agree with robbe and JPF). I realy doubt that the coach can make a team from those players, this is not the business of one or two months. Imho, we will see again the fight between THE TEAM and SUPER INDIVIDUALS of USA.

[mvblair]

Reggie/Jordan/Drexler, Olajuwon/Ewing/Robinson/Shaq/Barkley, Stockton/Johnson/Dumars or Pippen/Bird/Johnson/Mullin were all superstars in the league, but you could easily distinguish some of their specific things they could do on court, each of them had some different strenghts that made the whole team more variable...
right now give me Carmelo, Bryant, McGrady, LeBron... all 4 of them more of less offer you almost the same skill set. Which is uncomparable with the variety which Pippen/Bird/Johnson/Mullin could offer combined in the good old dream team age, each of them providing a whole lot different things to the table...

An excellent analysis, Matiz. This is a great way of stating the biggest differences between the two teams. The Dream Team had distinguishable players, but Team 2006-Team 2008 have the same skill set.

My question is- how many international competitions USA should lost that they would cut that supid "we are the kings of the world" attitude?

Well, not all of our players have that attitude. Yes, almost everyone from 2002 had this attitude, and it bled to 2004. Now though, I think most of these players realize that they cannot continue playing their same game and expect to win. I mean, they must realize that, right???