Today, the Team USA roster was announced, and the following players have been blessed with the opportunity to represent our country in this summer's Olympics.
Kobe Bryant
Lebron James
Carmelo Anthony
Dwyane Wade
Chris Paul
Deron Williams
Dwight Howard
Chris Bosh
Carlos Boozer
Michael Redd
Tyshaun Prince
Jason Kidd
Now, on paper, this team should score 115 points a game, and win the Gold. But recent international play from the U.S. has been only decent at best. With Coach K coaching this team, this should be an easy summer full of highlights and restore American pride on the international stage, right? Lets hope so. The international game is a fast-paced game and we have our work cut out for us.
My general expectations are based upon the basketball personality of the player and previous experience on the national team.
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Lebron James:
His athleticism will be unmatched by anybody guarding him. I dont expect him to score a lot of points except for those one-handed tomahawks. Lebron is big in China, so I see him playing more of a cosmetic role if any.
Carmelo Anthony
Carmelo gets most of his shine during the summer. He has torched the competition before and plays a better international game.
Chris Paul
After a breakout year, this is Paul's chance to make some noise on a bigger stage. I see him starting, but complimenting the idea of sharing time with Williams. When the scorers need to score, Paul will be running the point.
Deron Williams
Williams is a nice addition because he has a frame similar to most of the international point guards. Williams has the tenacity to finish strong and won't be intimidated by the chance to prove to the world what we have been seeing for a while.
D. Wade
Wade will be playing with a lot of passion. He has a lot to kinda re-prove to basketball fans since he has been injured the last couple of years. If he is any type of competitor, he won't let his legacy continue to diminish without a fight.
Carlos Boozer
I have a feeling that Boozer will be facing longer, more athletic forwards during the games, so im not expecting much from him in regard to production. A solid contributor at best.
Dwight Howard
If Dwight has found defense since Orlando lost in the playoffs, he will be okay. On the offensive end, he shouldn't have any problems.
Chris Bosh
Fiesty player, reminds me of a international forward. Can shoot, rebound, nice overall game. Bosh should earn a lot of respect during the games.
Jason Kidd
I dont think Kidd deserved this selection. This is more of a mercy pick. It's all about who you know.
Micheal Redd
Redd is the deep threat that they need. If he takes any shot inside the arc, he should be benched.
Tayshaun Prince
Strong contributor at best. May have issues with bigger small fowards, but his defense is a plus.
and last but not least....
Kobe Bryant
Kobe will do his best to win that Gold medal since that whole NBA championship thing didn't work out. I expect plenty of highlights from Kobe, but I don't expect him to be the team MVP. He caught hell about not being Mike during the finals, so he has to somehow, someway, make good with this attempt to establish his own legacy, if possible.
They better bring home the gold
I don't like this squad at all. Where are the big men?
I noticed that there arent a lot of big men too. Amare Stoudemire decided not to play because of pushing his body too much. Granted, he would have made a better center than Dwight due to his shooting range.
I guess the lack of big men coincides with Coangelo's and Coach K's styles. They want to run. Lets hope it doesnt bite them.
Forget the big men where are the spot up shooters? All I see is Michael Redd. They need a kyle korver
The us basketball team is full of stars and has zero collectivity and almost zero tactics preparation. That is their big problem. Argentina, Lithuania, Span, Russia and Greece can beat them. Very tough but they can.
WHAT?!?
They need Vince Carter more than they need Jason Kidd....even if they don't have the tall people at least put VC, because of his high hops
I'm not saying none of those people can hop but i just have much more passion for VC
There doesn't need to be anyone else. Kobe is on the team, enough said. Then theres Chris Paul, Lebron, and Dwight Howard I guess.