Shaq will play in 2004 olympics??

Why would it? I don't think this changes the motivations of the players in the slightest. It's still "me, myself, and my contract".

Representing your country, even after last September, just doesn't seem to hold any luster to these guys.

**** em.

 

USA Basketball may to blame as well. I think for a period they wanted a different group each time. They didn't want the same 6-8 guys going to represent the US. They had the mindset that any group of stars from the NBA could win.

The world has caught up and play sound basketball, they play as a team on offense and defense. Unless the US wants to train as a team for months, they need a collection of the top 10 players in the league, not just who wants to play.

 

It's more complicated than that. The Season ends in June and practice starts in July for the Worlds. Then the tournament goes into September, when NBA training camps begin. I think a lot of guys just are tired and don't want to play year round basketball. Still, guys like Kobe who are young and healthy should be there. There were injuries too this team, and top players like Francis and Carter were healing from injuries so they couldn't join. Also, USA Basketball doesn't know how to put a squad together. They are so worried about the personality of the players that they avoid guys like AI. If AI had been getting ready for the Worlds, he probably wouldn't have had his run in with the law this summer. I think even AI could behave himself if he was playing for team USA. I don't know why they chose Karl as coach, he has already shown that he can't coach a team with too many talented players. Also, where the hell was Chris Webber. Team USA didn't even ask him to play. We really needed him and a true center. Steve Francis will probably be on the next dream team, he said once that his goals were to win an NBA championship and a gold medal at the olympics. You know who else should have been on this team? LeBron James. Hell, other countries play teenagers all the time and I think he could have been quite succesful in this tournament. He should have at least been an alternate.

There is one guy who really would have helped this team, but didn't go because of the "me, myself, and my contract" reason. That's T-mac, the guy did say that he wouldn't do dunk contests again because it isn't worth it money wise, sheesh. Though he was badly hurt this year, so he has an excuse for not playing, but he should have joined the team back during the regular season when they put it together.

 

Webber was probably not called due his mar1juana incident last time. USA basketball wants a certain image, but that may change so they can win games.

The rest of the World plays just as many games as the NBA players. Foreign players in the NBA all take the time to play for their respective countries: Dirk, Yao, Peja, Vlade, Gasol, etc.

We should support those guys that went to play, they didn't fake an injury or dodge the call.

 

I think I'm the only person on these boards that doesn't look down on the elite NBA players for not playing. It's their time, if they don't want to play international games, then that's it.


And PLEASE stop trying to use 9/11 as a reason to play a SPORT.

This latest beating of the US team isn't going to motivate Tmac or Kobe to all of a sudden want to go play.
What they should do is just give it to the college players who will most likely display better effort.

 

You're not the only one:

Taking one for the team

By Ric Bucher
ESPN The Magazine


INDIANAPOLIS -- With all due respect to George Karl, it has been too long since the former ABAer and current Team USA coach got up and down a court if he truly believes playing in the World Championship is a great way to get in shape for the NBA season.

Argue that the honor of playing for one's country should outweigh all other concerns. Or that with fat guaranteed contracts, it's not as if protecting their earning power is an issue. Or that young players with little playoff exposure can gain valuable experience playing under pressure. Or that the pomp and circumstance of being on the international stage is not to be missed.

But play nine games in 11 days against opponents who all see it as the chance of their lives to make history? Having to compensate for lack of cohesion by outworking that same geeked-up opposition? With two, rather than three, referees, thereby allowing off-the-ball play that borders on dirty? With fans, based on attendance and TV ratings, showing little support but still expecting gold? All of it in India-no-place for 10 days away from home and family?

Don't get me wrong, it's noble and admirable that Michael Finley, Ben Wallace and the rest are here and willing to work their tails off on defense to compensate for their lack of offensive continuity and thereby uphold the national program's honor. On behalf of anyone who takes pride in being the world's greatest basketball nation, I thank them. (Reggie Miller gets props, too, but let's not go overboard -- he and Jermaine O'Neal are playing at home, and as an elder team statesman, Reggie can hoist a few 3s and call it a day.)

But I'm not about to bust on anyone as unpatriotic or lazy or selfish for taking a pass, especially if they've worn the stars and stripes before; Shaq, KG, Tim Duncan, Jason Kidd and Vince Carter all qualify. I can even somewhat understand why Kobe, who has played more than 100 games three years' running, hasn't participated, although rumors that he strung the selection committee along before saying no is another story. If Paul Pierce fades in April or May next season, are Celtics fans going to forgive him because of what he contributed to the national team this week? Not likely.

And don't point to the foreign NBA players here, either. Peja Stojakovic and Dirk Nowitzki are still relative newcomers to piggybacking NBA and international play. They're also single and in their early 20s. They should be here as much as Andre Miller and Elton Brand should. Where's 30-year-old Pistons/Yugoslav center Zeljko Rebraca? At a personal mountaintop training camp, that's where.

"I enjoy being with the guys and I'm young," Stojakovic says. "When I stop enjoying it, I'll stop playing for the national team."

Yugoslavia and the U.S. also are two of the only countries who can afford to have players decline an invitation. "In our countries, there are only 12 or 14 guys who can play at this level," says Argentina guard Pepe Sanchez, a former 76er who reportedly signed with the Pistons this week. "Our country couldn't compete here if guys said no, and we understand that."

In any case, this is not the ideal way to prepare for an 82-game NBA season. The competitive gap is no longer so marginal a U.S. player can afford to work on his weaknesses, or take a day off if a hamstring tightens up. There's also something to be said about the restorative powers of family time in light of the travel-heavy NBA schedule.

"For me," says Miami Heat and New Zealand forward Sean Marks, "it's always been that I get to represent my country on the world stage, but it is draining. Yes, we'd be working out anyway, but would we be playing this many games and risking injury? I don't think so."

The U.S. team does have the luxury of depth, meaning no one has to play more than 30 minutes. But being unfamiliar with the rules, particularly the trapezoid lane, and having to compete against teams who can reduce their workload with defensive zones and precision offense honed over years arguably makes playing time here more grueling than NBA minutes. Maybe it's coincidence, but some of the most durable and well-conditioned stars -- Karl Malone, John Stockton and Tim Duncan, to name three -- have sustained fatigue-related injuries after a summer of international competition.

"It's very hard to play through the season and then play here," Sanchez says. "I hope to play here and in the Olympics, and then that's it. It's great for young people coming up. Old people should leave it."

 

Again, it's not about playing a sport. It's about having some f***ing pride in your country. The nation has been brimming with national pride ever since that incident. The fact that these guys look at representing your country on the international scene as a hassle is very disturbing.

Vlade and Peja both have tremendous pride in their country. They too went through an 82 game season + playoffs, all the way up to the WCF. And Vlade's 35 years old. Just about all the guys we're talking about are in their early to mid 20's.

 

i dont think they will give a **** if team usa. Just let it be

 

forget image, the image we need is to win and kick ass at the same time.