Kobe thinks 2012 Olympic squad could beat "The Dream Team"

A little off topic but when is the first warm up game for this years olympics? And will it be on t.v.? I know we have one against Spain sometime soon.

 

Kobe doesnt even have an arguement right now.

- It would be better if he compared a healthy 2012 rosterwith rose dwight aldridge bosh wade all included

 

What??? Every single person you just mentioned for the Dream Team could play in the post. I would continue but it's obvious you're not coming down from the bath salt anytime soon.

 

CP better than Magic?
Pippen is better defensively
Barkley can rebound and does other things

 

If you don't know purpose of zone defense, you don't have to comment.

 

Ah of course. That list of HoF's would never figure out how to beat the ZONE DEFENSE!!!
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

 

again, evaluate the players in 1992, not names.
IMO that's nostalgia speaking right there.

Magic missed a full year and went through an extremely mentally taxing period. He was much slower. Noone --- not even Jordan in 1995 --- is at his best after taking a year off.

If for some reason (size advantage or whatever) someone disagrees, that's ok. But I'm surprised that so many people are stunned by the notion.

And Barkley IMO is unquestionably worse than LeBron. LeBron defends at incredible level. Barkley more often than not does not defend at all. The defensive gap is so huge, that I don't think it's necessary to go into other parts of their games. Barkley was a PF version of Carmelo with more balls.

 

If what you say is true... there is no way to find out really......
so what Kobe is saying is just a hypothesis
On paper the Dream Team is better..... disregarding how they were in shape at that time
Being better does not mean the London team can't compete or beat them, IMO Tyson at C is not enough

 

For the record, Bryant should just zip it and get the gold before opening his mouth.

 

If you look at 1995 Jordan, he wasn't playing at his best, but he was still playing at a high level. And even though Magic took a year off, he was still playing at a high level. Couple that with his 6 inch height advantage, and you can see why it'd be impossible for any of the 2012 PG's to match up against him.

 

Barkley would eat Marshmallow. The bigs would dominate, pippen would be a great athletic defender at forward. Jordan would rule. And the pgs would facilitate the offense. Old dream team is much more balanced and traditional and even with a bad back bird could still nail the three.. and he'd rise up if they needed him which they didn't. I think the younger guys always favor the players they see... And by the way they dream team was very athletic.... Players in the 90s were not all that long ago.

 

like you said the 92' team relied heavily on players in their prime, Magic/Bird would be perfect back-up in a dream team. the 92' Jodan/Pippen was unstopable. Jordan was in his prime, the 12' Kobe is not even close. the 92' Pippen was playing greatest defense of all time, should be able to lock down Durant/Melo while running the point for Dream Team. 92' Barkley, in his MVP years, is at least as dominant as LeBron if not better. Ewing+Robinson would eat Chandler for lunch every time they touch the ball.

 

Zone defenses give up a ton of open outside shots. The Dream Team would chuckle at a zone defense.Y

 

92' Jordan >> 12' Kobe (Kobe's 34 while Jordan was in his prime)
92' Pippen = 12' Durant (Pippen's defense will cancel out Durant's offense)
92' Barkley = 12' LeBron (please kids, watch some 90s' games b4 you argue)
92' Ewing >>> 12' Chandler (i feel guilty to compare Ewing to Chandler )
92' Robinson >> 12' Griffin (not even close)
92' Malone >> 12' Melo (again, not even close)
92' Bird > 12' Harden (i would have Bird play 6th man on the Dream team)
92' Drexler >> 12' Igudala
92' Mullin = 12' Westbrook
92' Magic = 12' Paul (CP3 is faster but how can he guard 6'9" Magic?)
92' Stockton = 12' D-Will (Stockton was still in his prime, all-time Assit/Steal)

92' Leathner < 12' Love (here's the only advantage for the 12' team, should have chose Shaq instead of Leathner)

92' Team will destroy 12' team in a 7 game series, maybe 4-1.

 

Dumb comparison. Why would you compare Harden and Bird? Harden is 12th guy on the bench.

I don't feel guilty to compare ringless Ewing, Malone and Barkley to Chandler.

12' team would win 4-2. If Howard, Bynum and Wade played, it could be sweep.

 

Malone is the 2nd leading scorer of all-time, Barkley was a league MVP, and Ewing is just a supeior all around player period to Chandler. You obviously have never watched these guys play.

 

high level =/= Magic level.
There's no chance for Magic to defend those guys in 1992. He had trouble guarding those little jet types like Isiah even in his prime, 2-5 years before that.

So if you use Magic a lot, you'd have to be creative with defense.
And then you'd have to find a lineup that makes sense offensively.

Basically, that discussion is moot because Paul and Magic wouldn't be matched up directly.
The 1992 team would have Magic defending a forward.
The 2012 team on the other hand would just play zone and force you to bring either Stockton, Mullin or Bird, or even two of them. If you bring Bird or Mullin and take out Pippen or Jordan, your defense takes a hit. If you bring in Stockton and replace Magic, it makes a lot of sense.

So again, the key advantage for the Dream Team is Robinson/Ewing IMO, not the point guard position.

 

I dont want anyone thinking that I am downplaying the greatness that will always be the Dream Team. But I do think alot of what is skewing peoples' opinions so heavily in favor of the Dream Team over the 2012 squad is like one poster said, it is a team entirely composed of HOF players who have long since finished their careers. They are a known quantity, skills and athleticism and clutch ability and nastiness and guts and all that stuff that goes into making seriously dominant basketball badasses. The 2012 squad and their ability to compete are based in large part on still to be determined potential greatness. Sure some have won championships, scoring titles, MVPs, scoring and DPOY awards, but none is at the end of their careers. They are relatively young and most are approaching or just now reaching their primes.
Scary to think how much better Durant could get, how dominant Griffin could be if he ever develops a reliable outside shot, if Westbrook can channel all that emotion and keep his head in the game. How amazing can Melo be if he plays defense like he did the last 20+ games of this year's regular season.
I agree that the Center position is far and away better in terms of big name, proven star true centers who could block shots and board with the best of them in the Admiral and Ewing. Barkley and Malone were bullies and would have their way on the boards with most competition. Alot of my analysis is based on the explosiveness and athleticism advantage that the 2012 frontcourt would have. Neither of them could block out griffin if he just jumps over them. Much of his rebounding game is just out jumping everyone. Love would stretch those two and make them guard all the way out to the 3-point line, lessening their effectiveness and ability to get defensive boards.
I just think it wouldnt be nearly the asswhooping by the Dream Team that alotta people have forecasted. But it remains to be seen if the members of the 2012 squad become as heralded and HOF worthy as every one of the Dream Team players. Wont know til they all hang it up if they turn out to be as great as the Dream Teamers. I doubt they all wind up in the HOF, but it makes for good offseason discussion.