Gold Medal Game
Team USA 118 - Spain 107 - Posted Sunday, August 24, 2008 11:20 am PST
Screw “redemption.” Screw “Redeem Team.” And screw all of the hype.
This was about patriotism and winning for your country. This was the spirit of the Olympic games in a world of commercialism, marketing, and self-image. No, these guys aren’t soldiers. And no, this isn’t the same or even close to what the U.S. soldiers around the world are doing as they truly serve this country. But you have to be able to put this in perspective.
You had $1 billion worth of NBA “prima donnas” and allegedly spoiled athletes come together as one 12-man unit. You had superstars and world icons put their egos aside to commit to bringing the gold medal in men’s Olympic basketball competition back home to the United States, where it resided for most of the final 25 years of the 20th century. This may not seem like something that should be commended because guys (especially pro athletes) are supposed to do this. Well, ask Larry Brown how easy it is to get the supposedly the greatest basketball team in the world to come together and bring home the gold.
Dwyane Wade said it best in the post-game interview with Craig Sager and Kobe Bryant when he said, “We haven’t won in 8 years. We’ve been doubted many times saying that NBA players, NBA stars can’t play together. We came out here and showed that it’s not about the name on the back of the jersey; it’s about the three letters in front.”
The story of this game was the fight that Team Spain put up against a U.S. team that had blown them out by 37-points in the pool play earlier in the tournament. Even though the Spanish team didn’t have its leader and arguably their best guard, Jose Calderon, they inserted 17-year old phenom, Ricky Rubio, and went to work. Pau and Marc Gasol were great early as they were physical and dominant inside. They were able to use their size and skills against the smaller frontcourt of the U.S. team. They had great play from Carlos Jimenez and Juan Carlos Navarro. They had two really good role players make a couple of big plays and play solid defense with Felipe Reyes and Alex Mumbru. Ricky Rubio played about as good as a 17-year old point guard could play in a gold medal game.
But the story for Spain besides Calderon’s thigh injury was Rudy Fernandez. He and Kobe Bryant were the two best players in the world for 40 minutes last night and it wasn’t even close. Rudy Fernandez kept his country in the game with the biggest 22-points of his life. He drained three-point shot after three-point shot and free throw after free throw as he showed the U.S. team that Spain would not wilt under pressure. And when he exploded past a gambling Kobe Bryant and threw down a tomahawk dunk over Dwight Howard late in the fourth quarter when Spain needed a spark to try to keep this game from becoming a late blowout, he showed the beginning of his stardom.
For Team USA, it once again was a complete team effort for most of the game. Dwyane Wade had 21 first half points and ended with 27 points. LeBron James had another great all around game and Carmelo Anthony continued his reputation as a great and effective international basketball scorer. Jason Kidd remained unbeaten in international play. Chris Paul and Deron Williams were a dynamic duo in the backcourt and Dwight Howard along with Chris Bosh gave impeccable play in the paint. But once again, the modern game of basketball was about Kobe Bryant taking over in the fourth quarter when his team and this time his country needed it the most.
Kobe Bryant proved to be the greatest closer in the world. And any doubts that he isn’t the greatest player in the world and that he wasn’t needed on this team were put to bed. Kobe Bryant had a stretch in the fourth quarter where he was responsible for 15 straight points either through scoring or assisting. Dwyane Wade had asked him to “let the Mamba loose” in the fourth after he battled early foul trouble and Kobe didn’t disappoint. He let it be known that Team USA would not lose this game. He hit big shots to quite the raucous Spain following in the crowd and he all but sealed the deal with a key 4-point play that put the Americans up double digits and fouled Rudy Fernandez out.
But I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the reason that this team won the gold medal – Jerry Colangelo. Jerry Colangelo has long been an ambassador for the game of basketball not just in the United States of America but also throughout the world. Along with David Stern, no one has been more responsible for the globalization of the NBA. And after the debacle with the 2004 Olympic games in Athens, he decided to take control of the selection process and the ideology of Team USA to establish a system that would get the job done not only this year but for the next 20 years plus. He installed a commitment and a schedule to not only get the best players in the world to play for Team USA but also to get them to play as Team USA instead of 12 individual USA citizens. Without his guidance and selection of Mike Krzyzewski as the head coach for Team USA, we may not be rejoicing as the best basketball country in the world.
I’ll leave you with this, which was also the lasting moment for me with Team USA and the Olympic basketball games from Beijing. The gold medal ceremony brought everything to a perfect close for Americans that cared about re-emerging as the greatest basketball country in the world. The lasting memory for me will be the reverence and pride that Mike Krzyzewski, Dwight Howard, and Kobe Bryant had as they held their hands over their hearts and sang along to the U.S. national anthem after receiving their gold medals. Not only was I proud to be a Team USA basketball fan, but also I was proud to be an American. It may sound cheesy but it’s moments like that in sports that can remind you that there are people in this country who are willing to sacrifice in order to bring glory back to your country.
The gold medal for basketball is back home. It’s back to the land of the free and the home of the brave. Thank you, Team USA and everyone involved.
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Team USA 116 – Australia 85 - Posted Wednesday, August 20, 2008 8:41 am PST
This is what we were waiting for. All of the pool play and exhibition games leading up until this morning were just a way of tuning up for the playoffs of Olympics basketball. We knew that Team USA wouldn’t have a problem qualifying for the medal rounds and that notion was validated with a 5-0 record and a 33-point margin of victory in pool play for the heavy favorites going into these games in China. The inside play had been shoddy but the guard defense and fast-paced style were so dominant that the closest game was a 21-point win over Angola in which the Americans literally didn’t try hard in the second half either due to Angolan adjustments at halftime or the more likely scenario of the guys being consumed in Michael Phelps Mania.
With today’s game against Australia, they faced the last team that truly gave them a challenge when Team Australia lost by 11 points sans Andrew Bogut during an exhibition tune-up before the Olympics started. Australia is a physical bunch of blokes that are fueled more by guards CJ Bruton and Patrick Mills than Andrew Bogut and Chris Anstey. And it appeared once again that Australia would give the Americans all they could handle in the first game that mattered. Despite giving up double digit offensive rebounds in nearly a blink of an eye early on, the Aussies were able to keep the game close due to timely shooting, physical defense inside and Patrick Mills trying to prove he’s an NBA ready point guard.
Patrick Mills is the point guard for the St. Mary’s College basketball team in Moraga, California. He scored 37 points in his first game with St. Mary’s and carried them to the NCAA tournament this past March. He also torched the trio of Jason Kidd, Chris Paul, and Deron Williams. In fact throughout most of this game, he was simply the best point guard on the floor. He ended up with 20 points, 3 steals, and 2 assists in this game, not to mention numerous prayers by Chris Paul and Deron Williams that he never gets drafted or decides to follow more money in Europe.
Despite hot shooting from the outside for Team USA early, the Aussies were resilient and quickly erased an early 9-point deficit. They overcame two quick fouls by Andrew Bogut and continuously attacked the basket thanks to relentless penetration by Mills and Houston Rockets property, Brad Newley. But Team USA closed out the second half in impressive fashion that was capped off by a Deron Williams buzzer-beater three that pushed the lead to 12, which is also tied for the smallest halftime lead that USA has had in these Olympics.
To start the third quarter, Team USA went on a 14-0 run that pushed the lead to 26 and was started by 3 three-pointers from Carmelo, LeBron, and Kobe. Kobe Bryant went on to finish with a game high 25 points and LeBron was unstoppable once again when he decided to attack the basket instead of settling for jumpers. The best defensive lineup on the floor was surprisingly Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Carmelo Anthony, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James despite playing against an Aussie lineup that included 2 seven-footers. That mixed in with some tenacious disruption by Dwyane Wade 2.0 (coined by Matt Moore of Hardwood Paroxysm) ended up being the straw that nailed the fat lady into the coffin. Team USA ended being too athletic on the offensive boards (19 offensive rebounds compared to Australia’s 28 total rebounds) and they shot too well from downtown (12 of 29) for the Aussies to compete for 40 minutes.
What this game meant for Team USA is that they could handle the pressure with many different lineups as long as they weren’t shooting free throws (just 18-31). They faced their first elimination game against a team that wasn’t afraid of them and was ready to shock the world. Team USA played smart offense for the entire game, which countered the fact that they could only force 11 turnovers. Deron Williams had a nice game, Carmelo Anthony continued his solid shooting, and Chris Bosh was once again the best big man on the floor (even though Dwight Howard had a very productive game).
Team USA now awaits the winner of the Argentina-Greece match-up in hopes of guaranteeing themselves a slot in the gold medal game. Anything less will be unacceptable and a complete failure of monumental proportions. So far Team USA hasn’t disappointed. They’re still winning games by over 30-points despite being tested early on. They’re wilting the competition after 16 minutes of solid play and forcing them to become the Shawn Bradley side of highlight reels.
I refuse to call this team the “Redeem Team” because I think it’s an idiotic nickname. But redemption seems to be a very likely possibility.
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USA 92 vs. Greece 69 - Posted Thursday August 14, 2008 11:44 am PST
I thought about recapping each game for Team USA (I refuse to call them the “Redeem Team” just like I refuse to call Chris Paul “CP3”) in the Olympics but after seeing that they were playing China and Angola in the first two games, I didn’t feel like it was worth writing about. Would I write about the Dark Knight making more money than Swing Vote? Of course not. So why talk about two guaranteed wins for Team USA as they prepare for two very tough teams with Greece and Spain? But here are my initial thoughts following the first two games (beat China 101-70 and Angola 97-76):
1.) We don't rebound well and don't keep teams off of the offensive boards.
2.) We guard the 3 pathetically.
3.) Not smart in pressuring the ball in the half court.
4.) LeBron James is playing some of the best help side defense I’ve ever seen from a small forward.
5.) Dwyane Wade is completely recovered with his explosiveness and quickness.
6.) The US attacks the basket far better than any other team in this tournament.
7.) Dwight Howard has been irrelevant so far and Chris Bosh is a much better international player.
8.) Michael Redd is no longer a good basketball player.
9.) This team gets caught up in sloppy play on offense when they should be putting teams completely away.
10.) Without shooting ourselves in the foot, our athleticism should win most games.
There is a fairly solid mix of positives and negatives and at times it looks like I'm nitpicking against a team that is 2-0 with a margin of victory sitting at 26 points. However, there are still 6 teams (Spain, Greece, Argentina, Australia, Croatia, and Lithuania) in this tournament that aren’t afraid of the US, are very experienced, and can easily knock us out in the single-elimination rounds if we don't correct our deficiencies. We're supposed to blow out teams like China, Angola, and Germany.
With that said, the performance against the Greece team this morning was mind-bottling in its impressiveness. This was a game where we set out to prove that Team USA was still the best team in the Olympics and that we were not going to be pushed around like we were in 2006. Greece was planning on roughing up our mentally soft and emotional players (Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard) and executing on offense in hopes that we still couldn't defend the pick-and-roll. The problem with that was Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, and Chris Paul pressured the ball so well that Greece never got a chance to weather our runs.
Teams USA was able to force 24 turnovers by Greece and constantly pressured, bothered, and frustrated the Greek players. Greece was never out of the basketball game because they have the ability to lock down defensively and knock down shots in spurts as they make runs. But for the second time in this tournament (it happened before against Spain), Greece wasn’t able to make their runs and weren’t able to be physical with a smaller but more talented team. Against Spain, Greece was cold from the three-point line and unable to handle the pressure of the more talented guards. This morning’s game was no different.
Dwyane Wade was literally the best player on the floor today and that’s with LeBron James and Kobe Bryant having tremendous games. Kobe tied with Chris Bosh for the lead in scoring for the game with 18 points on 7-15 shooting. And LeBron had 13 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 blocks, 7 poses for the cameras, and multiple highlights that can be revenue-generating propaganda. But Dwyane Wade was impossible to play against.
The man that went from Flash to Crash in a matter of 6 months following his NBA Finals MVP performance was unguardable on offense and couldn’t be challenged on defense. He scored 17 points, dished out 5 assists (some of the spectacular nature), and stole the ball 6 times. He did all of this in 20 minutes. After months of rehab and training from various debilitating injuries, D-Wade got his name back into the discussion of who’s the best player from the 2003 NBA Draft. Oh sure, LeBron is the biggest star and has the most talent. However, that doesn’t necessarily make him the best player outright.
As for the rest of Team USA, this performance was nearly perfect. The defense wasn’t just suffocating; it was spirited and fueled by past frustrations. It was arrogant. It was commanding. It was a blocked shot followed by a cold stare as to say, “Who’s the best country is no longer up for discussion.” It was a blocked shot, followed by another blocked shot, followed by a tip towards half-court that would eventually lead to a spot on Sportscenter’s Top 10. It was so much that it was good as it was striking and memorable. There were only 3 things that didn’t go right for the team in red, white, and blue.
1.) They shot poorly from the free throw line. The US was just 13 for 23 from the line and you can’t even blame Dwight Howard who was 0 for 1.
2.) Jason Kidd had an embarrassing alley-oop attempt off the backboard on what turned out to be a 3 on 4 fast break. It was a stupid pass that got him yanked from the game and embarrassed most logical Team USA fans. For the record, it was about as close to being completed as Oliver Miller is to his target Body Mass Index.
3.) Carmelo Anthony had one dunk attempt in which he didn’t really make it to the rim. He was off-balance when he tried to jump straight up in traffic against two defenders and barely got the ball to the bottom of the rim.
That's it. No stretches of uninterested defense. No stretches of Sofoklis Schortsanitis dominating the interior despite the fact that he has about as much conditioning as current-day Vlade Divac. No stretches of the game where they couldn’t defend the pick-and-roll consistently. No stretches of Vassilis Spanoulis dominating our point guards. This was a solid blowout win with very little in terms of discouraging signs of imminent defeat.
This team is ready to take on Spain to gauge what percentage of the game of basketball that we actually own.
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My Notes from the USA vs. China 101-70 victory - Posted Thursday, August 14, 2008 11:44 am PST
The 101-70 victory over team China was great on the surface but China showed the initial concerns for Team USA.
1.) We don't rebound well and don't keep teams off of the offensive boards. That's going to be a HUGE problem against teams like Argentina, Australia, Greece, Spain, and Germany.
2.) We guard the 3 pathetically. China got a lot of wide open threes and hit 10 of 27 overall in the game. We simply don't play that smart in zone defenses. Dwyane Wade in particular (who had a fantastic offensive game and looks to be back) was awful in his decision to double-team players and leave open three-point shooters. This will be a huge problem against Greece, Spain, and Lithuania.
3.) Not smart in pressuring the ball in the half court. When we pressured the Chinese guards in a full court press and full court trap, we dominated their guards. But when we let them get into their sets in the half court and tried to play that over-extending pressure defense on the ball, our players often got blown by. China was phenomenal for most of the game in protecting the ball. That will be a big problem against Greece, Russia, Spain, and Lithuania.
A few things that I was happy with:
1.) LeBron James - His help defense and transition defense was phenomenal. He protected the basket extremely well and that's encouraging since we don't have any shot blockers outside of Dwight Howard (who looks to be a terrible international big man).
2.) Dwyane Wade - He was incredible in his on ball defense. He was also unguardable when he had the ball and especially in the open court. If he can play like this, he'll be our best player outside of LeBron and Chris Bosh.
3.) Attacking the basket - This was easy to do because the Chinese players were so undersized but Team USA was 31 of 44 from 2-point range. We attacked the basket ferociously and used our size and strength when we got into the paint. That's encouraging but will not be easy against better backcourts.
Overall, it was a solid performance, but people shouldn't look at the final score and think that we have the gold medal wrapped up. Spain is by far a much a better team and will prove it if we don't play better. I'm not worried about them in pool play, but when it comes to single elimination, Spain will be the scariest opponent. Right now, they're the favorite to win it all in my opinion, unless we fix our team problems.