newspapers, and other media outlets will strongly focus on Team USA--The Basketball Edition. While the term "Dream Team" is no longer appropriate--and far outdated, this years reincarnation will be far ahead in talent than whomever it is matched up against. With that being said, after the 2004 Olympic debacle it should be mentioned that talent alone does not win the Gold Medal. That disappointing "team" mixed about as well as oil and water.It appears the powers-that-be have attempted to rebuild on a new philosophy: balance, character, and experience. While this author has been critical and snide regarding Coach K in the past, Mike Krzyzewski--along with a little serving of Kobe
Bryant and Lebron James--will be, I believe, the perfect ingredients for success in 2008. The style of Coach K--defensively sound and team oriented--is a concept that was completely lost on the Larry Brown and Allen Iverson led squad four years ago. A solid playmaker like Jason Kidd, has to be an upgrade over a shoot-first point guard like Iverson. That is not to say this team will not struggle--they will, unlike the Magic, Michael, and Larry version 16 years ago that simply overwhelmed its opponents then. Of course, this is not a knock on the current team. It just shows the climate of where 
basketball is on an international level. It has greatly advanced from the outer reaches of Europe to the heart of South America.In the end, a Gold Medal in 2008 may mean more than the 1992 achievement when the competition was outright laughable. Now that the rest of the world has caught up, things just might get interesting for Team USA. And a hard fought, drawn-out win by the current NBA All-Stars (no longer to be referred to as the "Dream Team") may just be more satisfying in the context of redemption. At the very least, it will save some embarrassment for the NBA. And if this team loses? Lets just bring back the collgiate athletes and call it a day.
0 comments:
Post a Comment