Discussion 2008 Summer Olympics (Beijing)

[yoniekai]

The '92 team dominated against far inferior competition, but the '08 Redeem Team played against international teams that had rosters stocked with NBA level talent. Despite the "equality" of the skill level, the '08 team was still able to dominate their opponents in most instances. I think this a good description: the '92 Dream Team was the best group of individuals the USA has ever put on a basketball court, but the Redeem Team is the best team the USA has ever put together. This gold medal was team effort, not just Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and Larry Bird wearing the same colored jersey as one another.

i dunno man, i think about that everytime this topic surfaces, but i always imagine the dream team to be a lot better. i cant imagine them missing jumpshots like the redeem team does a lot. and barkley/ewing/robinson > gasol/yao/bogut/howard/nowitzki/boozer/bosh. plus MJ, how can you lost with MJ on the team... and he's not even the lead scorer in that team... this topic is such a bother... i'm just sad that the olympics are over

do you think london will live up to the hype?

 

[LB56]

Well, you have to think that all lot of the missed shots were because the competition is lot better now than it was 16 years ago. If you were to rewatch the '92 gold medal game against Croatia you'd see that they never switched their defense mid-possession (I honestly don't think they knew how), played man-to-man which is always going to be a total disaster against the U.S., and essentially tried to play one-on-one with the U.S. when they had the ball. The '92 could pretty much drive to the basket and score if they got by one man, or kick it out for the wide open three if they were feeling generous.

The players on the '92 team didn't play like they had 4 other guys on the court with them, because they didn't have to. Like I said, the Dream Team is easily the most talented group of men to ever set foot on the court, but each individual on the team was just that, an individual. They lacked the ability to work as part of a cohesive unit like the members of the '08 team.

Throughout the Olympics the members of the Redeem Team always look for the extra pass, fought through zone defenses with a combination of excellent ball movement and better than average outside shooting, fed off the pick and roll to perfection, and, with the notable exception of last night, were always switching on defense so they would always have help on the backside.

Of course, this is just my opinion and I don't know a ton about basketball. It's really a fun argument, and I think the fact that people can have this argument shows how good team USA was in these Olympic games. Hopefully we can have the same argument about the team that goes to London in '12.

 

[vintagemistakes]

Here are the rosters for each team...

Dream Team vs. Redeem Team

Pos.  	Player  	 Pos.   Player
G 	Magic Johnson 	 G 	Jason Kidd
G 	Michael Jordan 	 G 	Kobe Bryant
G 	John Stockton 	 G 	Chris Paul
G 	Clyde Drexler 	 G 	Dwyane Wade
G/F 	Scottie Pippen 	 G 	Deron Williams
F 	Larry Bird 	 G      Michael Redd
F 	Charles Barkley  F 	LeBron James
F 	Karl Malone 	 F 	Carlos Boozer
F 	Chris Mullin   	 F 	Carmelo Anthony
F 	C. Laettner 	 F 	Tayshaun Prince
C 	Patrick Ewing 	 C 	Dwight Howard
C 	David Robinson 	 C/F 	Chris Bosh

And with that said... IMHO I don't know how anyone could think that the Redeem team would beat the Dream Team.

I mean... just look at the Dream Teams team. With the Exception of Laettner and Mullin everyone one of them is not only a Hall of Famer but also one of the all time greats at their respected position. They could play suffocating defense, run with anyone in the open court, and most importantly... they could actually shoot the ball. Their era of basketball was far superior. Technically they may not be better athletes but their basketball I.Q. is/was greater.

The whole Idea that the Redeem Team is better because they played like a Team is quite laughable. Yes these guys played more like a team. But that perception is based on the modern NBA... where no one plays team ball. The Dream Teamers not only played in a era where team basketball was prevalent but also played 3+ years of college ball... where they learned basic basketball skills(like being able to make a 10 foot jumper more than 30% of the time) and learned what teamwork truly is... one guy can't win you a championship in the NCAA's.

These Redeem Team guys still don't know what teamwork is based on the Gold Medal game. They should of won by 30... but too many times when they got in trouble they reverted back to a whole bunch of me and a lot less of the we stuff...

Anyways, I'm kinda sad to see the Olympics go... I must say that I enjoyed having a sports/event bonanza to watch at night. The truly weird thing about it is that you find yourself watching these completely random events that you normally would have absolutely no interest in, but for some reason you can't change the channel.

 

[miyi]

The '92 team dominated against far inferior competition, but the '08 Redeem Team played against international teams that had rosters stocked with NBA level talent. Despite the "equality" of the skill level, the '08 team was still able to dominate their opponents in most instances. I think this a good description: the '92 Dream Team was the best group of individuals the USA has ever put on a basketball court, but the Redeem Team is the best team the USA has ever put together. This gold medal was team effort, not just Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and Larry Bird wearing the same colored jersey as one another.

hmm..point well taken. Although I still would give the '92 Dream team the slight edge....they obliterated all competition, even the gold medal game.

But, it's a hypothetical, and I know how annoyed people get when we discuss hypotheticals.

I forgot to mention though....if Spain was that good against USA in the gold medal round, that just shows how many NBA all star caliber talent they have in that roster.

It wasn't as though the USA team played poorly....Spain was just pretty damn good.

anyway...sad that the olympics are over. that went by fast.

 

[yoniekai]

I forgot to mention though....if Spain was that good against USA in the gold medal round, that just shows how many NBA all star caliber talent they have in that roster.

It wasn't as though the USA team played poorly....Spain was just pretty damn good.

yeah man, rudy fernandez will be a rookie this season... and in portland at that. damn that team picks the best players. and ricky rubio, if he keeps improving his stats, in about 2 years where he's gonna be 19 and eligible, most experts say he will be the no. 1 pick

 

[Lohnt]

The US team played well, and Spain just played amazingly, but the US still won.

The original Dream Team is unbeatable, by ANY team in all ages of all time. Aside from Jordan, Bird and Magic, Stockton averaged more assists than either Nash or Kidd in any of their seasons, Pippen is irreplaceable as a leader, The only player to ever remind me of him is Webber, and that's in his Kings days. Barkley's crazy, but I think the comparison should be Magic and Lebron because both could play ANY position and dominate, which Lebron proved this olympics.

For the record, I think Kobe made all the difference, and if this team were to stick around, they could lose to teams like Spain and Greece, but both teams would need to shoot a LOT better, and add at least one more superstar to their lineups with NBA finals experience (like Dirk, Parker, Ginobli etc).

 

[miyi]

Barkley...wasn't he an MVP and in his prime, around the early 90's?

Jordan, Bird, Magic, Barkley, these four can probably take on the Redeem Team starting Five....I'm not kidding.

 

[Lelo]

wow, I can't believe I haven't posted here during the olympics. I basically watched everything, I recorded it all w/ my DVR. My overall thought, it was awesome, a little contreversal but simply the best olympics ever. Although some got screwed(like Ara from Sweden in wrestling or that girl who landed on her knees on that beam thing and still got bronze) it was still great to watch. Both opening and closing ceremonies were ridiculous, ive never seen anything like that. I watched way more Olympics than I thought I would. Now we have to wait 4 more years, and its going to be in England baby. The English football team better play this time.

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bottom line is, every team other than the USA team is a shooting team. If its back then or now. They dont have big men who can take out the USAs big men. Obviously the game has evovled a little since Jordan left, soo much more international players now. That gives them NBA experience, which they can take back home to their county and teach their teammates. But never, ever should the USA team lose in basketball. The only reason they lost in the olympics in 04 and the world championships in 06 was cause they were over confident. They didn't send the best Americans to play, not even one of the top 4. In 04 the top 4 players in the NBA were Shaq, Kobe, Mcgrady and Garnett, they are all Americans but they didn't play. So if we send the best Americans everytime we would never lose. Also USA almost lost against Spain, it was a close game.

Having said that, just cause they got the Gold doesnt mean they are as good or even better than the Dream Team. No one will ever be as great as them. Come on, Magic, Jordan and Bird, thats ridiculous. They beat every team by an average of 49 points.

 

[Lohnt]

bottom line is, every team other than the USA team is a shooting team. If its back then or now. They dont have big men who can take out the USAs big men. Obviously the game has evovled a little since Jordan left, soo much more international players now. That gives them NBA experience, which they can take back home to their county and teach their teammates. But never, ever should the USA team lose in basketball. The only reason they lost in the olympics in 04 and the world championships in 06 was cause they were over confident. They didn't send the best Americans to play, not even one of the top 4. In 04 the top 4 players in the NBA were Shaq, Kobe, Mcgrady and Garnett, they are all Americans but they didn't play. So if we send the best Americans everytime we would never lose. Also USA almost lost against Spain, it was a close game.

I disagree, even if the US sends its best players, they still wouldn't win, like in 06 where they had starting 5 superstars. No other team had players like the US, but they lost.

During the Olympics, the US team played like a team, they sacrificed their summer and over the past 2 years various practice sessions, in order to tie together as a team. This is what was missing, not more superstars.

Now granted, I do give Kobe a LOT of credit, but that is only because he is the most psychological player of our time. If anyone was watching, he was the ONLY player (not even the coach) to stay behind and watch the Argentina vs Greece game. 2 years ago, as well as 4 years ago, Lebron, Wade and Anthony would laugh when people spoke to them of other teams. They knew none of their opposing players, none of the abilities of their opposing teams, and simply assumed that because they were the NBA superstars, the gold was in the bag.

This changed this year, and that is why they won. Practice as a team for two years, respecting their opponents and sacrificing personal stats for the team.
They could have easily let Kobe or Lebron sit there and shoot 50 points, but they didn't.