Lebron James..... called for travelling THREE TIMES......sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet.. he probably did'nt get called that many times in the whole NBA season...... .....NBA what a joke.(though yes Lebron is not the only player that travels...but still funny to see)
I enjoyin watchin NBA but there r things i just dont like about NBa, i.e the so called Superstars treatment. A travel is a travel, a foul is a foul, i dont care whether is LeBron James or Mike Wilks who commits, just be FAIR!!!! Team USA lost not because of talent or lack of shooters, they have enough talents to overcome every flaws. They lost because they treat their opponents lightly as simple as that. Imagine a 19 year old kid who is one of the superstars in making by the NBA also one of the kids who NEVER play any internationals games in his life, promised a GOLD in the olympics, you know those kids dont respect their opponents at all. That's the real reason team USA lost. But this game serve as a wake up call, expect team USA to whip Germany's asses the next game when they treat the opponents seriously...
I wouldn't get too worked up over this loss. Team USA has only been practicing for a couple of days. Once they get playing with each other, they can still run away with the Gold. "Run" being the operative word because there isn't any bigger weakness to exploit in the sport of Basketball than transition defense. If Larry Brown can get everybody to dig down on defense, and Duncan and co. continue to control the boards, then the running attack can make up for the lack of outside shooting. And I wouldn't mind seeing a fullcourt press more often. I mean we got the young legs in James, Melo, Wade, Amare, and Boozer. We might as well use them.
You guys forgot that team USA used to send college players to the Olympic and still win the gold medal easily.... until they lost to Russia in 1988 Olympic (I believe) ... then only they decided to send the first Dream team to Olympics... How the world is catching up man...
I still think the USA will easily win the Olympic Gold medal (especially since Germany will not be in the tournament ).
I almost wish that the USA team would have a disappointing Olympiad or two, with the hope that some of the REAL stars of the NBA will have some pride in their country and play for it. I think we forget sometimes that while the original Dream Team had the best players in the world (and competition wasn't NEARLY what it is now), they all wanted to be there and were PROUD to have the gold medal placed around their neck. I just don't see that attitude in recent years. The Olympics just don't mean as much to us as they do to other countries.
IMO, shooting or not, the US team have too much depth, size and athleticism for most if not all the international teams. So rather than adjusting to the International teams, the US should make the international teams adjust to them. If I were coaching the US Olympic team, I would: 1. Ask the players to flat out sprint to the other end the moment the US gets the ball. Make the international players know that if they loses the ball or miss the shot, within 3 seconds, it will be a dunk or layup on the other end. Demoralise the opposition. Make them hesitant to take any risk knowing the consequence of failure. Make their star players tired by having to sprint back each time on defence. 2. Full court press the whole game. Make the International players bring the ball up against NBA athleticism. Lets see how good their ball handling skills are. 3. As much as possible, try not to play the 1/2 court game on offence. This is where the US player's lack of shooting skills and the opposition's zone defence could hurt the US. By fast breaking and full court pressing, hopefully this means the amount of 1/2 court basketball they actually have to play is minimised. 4. Use the depth on the team! Virtually all players in the team are NBA starters. I realise by doing the above all game, the players could get tired. But this is where the US can expose the other teams - they have way more depth than their closest rivals. 5. On 1/2 court defence, play their shooters close, and bank on the fact that they don't have the ball handling skills, or quickness to dribble by and shoot, or have the length to shoot over the NBA starters. All of which will require every single US player to play with great intensity for the whole game.
I like the way you are thinking, but I'd replace KT with Brent Barry. KT is not a good offensive player for this team, I'd rather have another shooter to hit the open shots generated by the rest.
sounds like shooters is not the major problem PERIMETER DEFENSE IS Rocket River Defense 1st Offense 2nd
Exactly. I was thinking: how many times will the US team be called travel? Must be a dozen a game at least.
The US was screwed in '72. They didn't go in '80. So the only real loss was in '88. That's when they decided college kids weren't enough to guarantee a gold.
Shawn Marion is the best 3 pt shooter on the team??? Give me a break. Here is my team, excluding those who declined the invites: PG - Andre Miller A true ball distributor, always in control, in the Stockton mold. SG - Michael Redd Is there a better catch and shoot guy in the league? SF - Shawn Marion Role player, good defender, great rebounder at his position. PF - Tim Duncan Nuff said. The goto guy C - Brad Miller Role player, can shoot from 15, awesome passer, killer instinct. Bench: SG/SF - James Posey Or Tayshaun Prince. I give the nod to Posey, a shut down defender with more offensive skills than Prince. SG - Wally Szczerbiak The guy can flat out shoot. Not the best NBA 3 pt range, but at the international line would be an assassin. SF - Carmelo Anthony Designated "Microwave" off the bench PF - Zach Randolph Or Amare Stouadmire, but I prefer Randolph's polished offensive game. SG - Allan Houston Pure shooter C - Theo Ratliff The US team would have more flexibility... let their PGs penetrate, but don't leave their shooters. Let Theo clean things up. PG - Kirk Hinrich Another pure point guard who can really shoot from outside. Doesn't have Dwayne Wade's athleticism, but as other skills more effective in the international game.
This is whats going to happen when our best players don't play. No Garnett. No Mcgrady. No Bryant. No Shaq. No chance. rainmaker I think Brad Miller would of been a great pick to play in international competition. I don't understand how Boozer and Stoudamire get the nod over him. And Allan Houston and Micheal Redd should have been asked before Marion and Odom. It seems good perimeter shooters make a big difference in international competition. Wally Scerbiak would of been a good replacement pick as well. Even with the best players deciding to not be part of the team, the selection committee did a poor job of selecting the right group of players to replace them. Boozer, Marion, and Stoudamire are the first bad replacement picks that come to mind.
Allan Houston's got an injured knee. But Redd and Sczerbiak are great picks. Even though their first zonebuster choice of Rip Hamilton declined, there are other shooters out there. No need for more erratic shooting athletic specimens like Marion, James, and Wade.
