Juror 12
Years ago

USA Olympics Team Review

Seeing as I do not watch any NBA games I really enjoyed the chance to see the US play the last couple of weeks. The only knowledge I had about how these guys played was gained by reading ESPN, Hoops and checking their stats and boxscores during the NBA season. So here are my thoughts after actually seeing them play (all be it in a different team and context to the NBA):

LeBron: I'll ignore all of the off court stuff and the on court ego and just concentrate on his game. I have never seen anyone as strong as him going to the hoop. Guys just seam to bounce off him - and if even if they hang on to him he continues on as if they are not even there. I can see why he is so unstoppable in the NBA style of game. I don't think his game is particularly suited to the international rules and style tho.

Howard: I was less than impressed with him after the way people talk about him in the NBA. He seems to drift in and out of games a lot (mentally) and has limited moves. I didn't watch a game in which he didn't commit at keast one stupid and unnecessary foul.

Bosh: He surprised me and I was more impressed with him than Howard. I had no idea he was such a beanpole - that really works against him when guarding the big guys (now I know why Toronto made the O'Neal trade).

Wade: He seems to cop so much flack on here but he was the guy who impressed me the most. He plays the international style extremely well - mainly due to his excellent movement without the ball. He plays so much better when he doesn't constantly have the ball in his hands trying to force plays.

Kobe: Seemed to struggle without always having the ball in his hands. He made some big shots when it mattered but he seemed to be an extremely inconsistent shooter for such a star (same for LeBron).

Paul and Williams: I can see why these two guys are stars of their teams. Both see the floor well, pass well, pentetrate well and shoot well. It would've been hard not running the team for 90% of a game (like they are used to) but these guys adapted to their roles really well.

Kidd: He didn't seem to contribute much in terms of making plays but I think he was a good inclusion simply because he appears to be well respected among the team. Anyone see when he threw Melo away from a potential scuffle? That's why he was in the team. Plus he is 43-0 now?

Melo: I like his game not his attitude/demeanor. I think he could punish guys in the low post a bit more than he does but it may have been hard in this team and with all of the zome they faced.

Prince: I actually think that the USA would've been better off playing Prince instead of LeBron simply because he fits the need/role better. They didn't need more socrers/stars. They needed a more consistent shooter and a more reliable defender. For me Prince does both of those things better than LeBron. You'd never pick him before LeBron in any other circumstances - but I think Prince complements the other guys (Wade, Kobe, Melo etc) in this team better than LeBron.

Redd and Boozer - Didn't really see enough of them to comment but I got the impression that Redd is lazy and Boozer is a pretty solid worker.

Anyone else have any thoughts or comments?

Topic #17092 | Report this topic


curious geroge  
Years ago

kidds 56-0 now

Reply #201424 | Report this post


breaklamp  
Years ago

Its hard to comment on Team USA vs the way they play in the NBA. You have guys who are stars on their team who took a back seat for the Olympics. Other guys like Lebron who lack support playing for Cleveland had so much support and played a different role I think.

Lebron James: I thought his style suited the Euro style very well. As you mention, he gets to whereever he wants to on the floor but his defense and shooting is his main weakness.

Howard: I think Howard was less than impressive for two reasons. Firstly, he was not the offense focus for the team and secondly, many teams collapsed inside and forced Team USA to shoot from the outside seeing that was a struggle for them - particularly early in the Olympics. He wasnt as dominant on the rebounds either but many of these Euro teams (and australia) had big front lines.

Bosh: Good comment here. I was also impressed with Bosh. He is very agile and can play away from the basket, making him great for the international competition. I thought he was a great surprise for Team USA - he seemed to enjoy backing up Howard and coming off the bench. He (along with Wade) gave a good spark off the bench.

Wade: I was seriously questioning the decision to pick him after his injury plauged season. I wasnt sure his body would cope with his lack of match conditioning and the physicality of the international play. But I thought he was brilliant. His knees looked great. My favourite Wade move is when he is driving to the basket and he is able to zig zag around opponents. Cant wait to see what he will do for Miami this season if he stays healthy.

Kobe: His shooting was inconsistent but Kobe being Kobe, it was always going to come back. He was always going to keep shooting. He seemed to always produce the plays when Team USA were challenged and I think he was a terrific perimetre defender. You could probably put him as the most best player on the team with Lebron.

Paul and Williams: I didnt like the idea of Kidd starting but really, once Paul and Deron came on, Kidd didnt get all that many minutes. I thought both guys were brilliant and will be even better in 2012. Having said that, I thought Deron was just a little better than Paul (some may disagree) but his size and strength seemed to help him more going to the basket -and especially when guarding 6ft2-plus opposition guards.

Kidd: Only there for the leadership factor. He didnt contribute much on the court I didnt think (or if he did, i didnt see it). Off the court though, he may have been invaluable. Either way, I dont think he was ever going to be a major impact player.

Melo: I agree with you about his attitude. Sticking out his tounge and going after opposition players after hard fouls was stupid. Fair enough he wants to back up his team mates but for a team that is trying to win gold and change the world perception about them, that isnt helping their cause. He is a great international player though - has great range and is effective around the basket. His worst game was probably the gold medal match.

Prince: Team USA would never play Prince ahead of Lebron. But when Prince did play, I thought he was great - mainly because his wing span is like an eagle. I hear what you are saying - they didnt need another scorer on the court but Lebron is a player the other team has trouble defending. Prince could have caused problems for the Spanish guards who were playing very well but at the same time, you arent going to have Lebron on the bench.

Redd and Boozer - Like you say, didnt get much time but I thought Boozer would have had more minutes during the tournament but is a defensive liability inside. Redd had some good games but playing for a gold, I can understand why coach K had him on the bench.

Reply #201434 | Report this post


Isaac  
Years ago

Wade was excellent, LeBron a short way behind. Hard to fault the efforts of CP3 and Deron. Redd was pretty efficient when on court I thought. Melo just sits his fat arse on the arc and waits for the ball. Not a fan.

Reply #201437 | Report this post


breaklamp  
Years ago

Despite Chandler being left out of the team, I reckon a few other players would be a great fit for Team USA.

Many wont agree but i think artest would be a great player. Has an all round game, can shoot, defend and is strong as an ox.

Josh Smith would be another great player. Brandon Roy would also be a good choice - he makes great decisions. I think he will be there in 2012.

Reply #201440 | Report this post


Anonymous  
Years ago

Where the hell was Amare ? Why was he not there instead of freakin Boozer ?

Reply #201443 | Report this post


Sturty6ers  
Years ago

From what I saw on Ch7......

-32.6 seconds into the second quarter and then a cut-over to the 43rd showing of Stephanie Rice winning the Gold (nice software Stephanie....)
-Back to the game for the entire time-out where Coach K was barking instructions and Bosch was getting his hair touched up.
-Following on from the time-out we have an add break. Oh goody Reddy Red Rooster. Coles advert with the watermelon rolling around in the car.
-Back to the game and that's the end of the third quarter, now we are switching over to our Home and Away committments.....
-Back to the 2008 Olympic games but before we go back to the Gold medal Basketball game we are just going to re-cap Australias medal winners followed by the equestrian standings, the trap shooting results and then a quick look at a rags to riches story about a 12 year old vietnamese rap dancer......
-By the way, anyone that is waiting for the basketball, USA won.

Reply #201444 | Report this post


Bo Hamburger  
Years ago

Agree with the pro-Wade sentiment - consistently their best across the tournament, and showed up when it mattered.

That 3 in the clutch yesterday was huge - and just as good was the face he pulled after it, described beautifully here as the classic 'who farted?' agony-of-victory face.

Reply #201485 | Report this post


vanexel31  
Years ago

melo sucks, fat arrogant very average spot up shooter. agree with isaac just sits on the 3 point line. he just has no where near the athleticism of his other team mates and besides the argentina game where he got all them charity free throws he did f*ck all. could not believe he kept getting court time, would have taken tracy mcgrady over him.

Reply #201498 | Report this post


oooh  
Years ago

1. kobe - can't touch this. whats more to say. everyones MVP
2. lebron - '6.8' of muscled manhood
3. d-wade - little but good. really slick and nice dresser
4. howard - adonis body - would do well with a dance routine Chipndale style
5. redd - knows how to stroke it

Reply #201572 | Report this post


That sounded strangely sexual, oooh. Do you have a thing for the usa team

Reply #201573 | Report this post




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