Wasn't Christian Laetner (sp?) on the original Dream Team? Good game to watch. Very exciting, and yes Kobe did mess up a lot early and made up for it late. This is much better than a blowout. I hope Olympic basketball Gold medal games are like this for the future. FIBA rules are changing too. Next Olympics will have a further out 3pt line, an NBA rectangle paint, and a restricted area circle under the basket.
I think it's a sign for Stern. Make it USA vs. World in the All Star Game Make it international rules. Who WOULDN'T watch that???
Don't forget the crappy ref's and the fact that many around the world root against us. No one can can deny that this was OUR'S to lose. That's the game plan, keep it close and hope that we choke. So how does that make other countries better than us? Not to take anything from Spain, they played (Navarro, Fernandez) lights out. But that was the game plan, keep it close and hope we choke. It didn't happen.
Please stop the hates on foreign players and embrassing yourself. Dirk, Yao, Gasol, Manu, Nocioni, Caledron, Kirilenko, Scola are all solid players in the NBA. Others like Delfino, Garbajosa, Kleiza, Oberto, Khryapa are all serviceable nba players as well!
i hope navarro is taking notes from rafer on how to make it in the nba and not only show up when playing team USA, like so many other players.
The problem is there is only 5 fouls on the FIBA basketball and most of the Spanish player where on foul trouble, and if the feel you are fouling intentional they will call a unsportsmanlike foul and is 2 FT and the ball.
He didn't have problem making the floater in the NBA, he just follow in love to much with the 3 and take to many bad shoots and don't like to play defense (as the entire Memphis team)
That was ridiculous. The guy is nothing but a scrub but we made him look like Isiah Thomas. No adjustments made to stop him from getting in the lane at will. Rudy Fernandez on the other hand is straight up cold blooded. I was majorly impressed with him. The Blazers are going to be reaaaally good this season. Props to Kobe, DWade, and Lebron for getting it done.
Kobe. Kobe. Kobe. I feel really proud, more so from a cultural standpoint than a patriotic one. Also, I'm just glad that Yao and Scola came out of these Olympics healthy and ready for this season. I knew the Gold was ours, but was just worried about the health of our front line. Now we rest... ...for the upcoming takeover.
Makes me wonder if all these foreign players form a team and play against current US team, who will win?
They would obviously be more talented but they would lose a lot of the teamwork that makes it possible for a team like Spain to stay on the court with the US. The experience of playing together as a team is a big deal in basketball.
I totally agree. That Spanish team doesn't have 1/5th the talent of Team USA. They've just played together longer and are more familiar with FIBA rules. Let them try to do that against us playing our rules on our court in a 48 minute game. They have one player that had any semblance of athleticism in Rudy Fernandez. The rest of them just play smart basketball within the team concept to make up for their far inferior athleticism. If Team USA was more familiar with FIBA basketball, the blowouts would have been even more massive. I am looking forward to the next international even when the rules more closely resemble NBA rules. Hopefully, the officials will be better, too.