US Olympic hoops team begins play against China

The US Olympic basketball team, arguably the deepest and most talented since the legendary “Dream Team” of 1992, begins play on Sunday against China. While the US is expected to handle the host team, China could present some matchup problems due to their size—they frequently play with three 7 footers on the court at the same time, led by 7’6” NBA superstar Yao Ming—but the reality is that they likely don’t have the ballhandling or playmaking skills to pose a serious challenge.

The US team will start Olympic play with a formidable starting lineup consisting of Jason Kidd at pointguard, Kobe Bryant at shooting guard, LeBron James at small forward, Carmello Anthony at power forward and Dwight Howard at center. Miami’s Dwayne Wade, who’s looked sharper than he has in a couple of years during the Olympic run-up, will be the sixth man off the bench. There’s a good deal of speculation that as the competition progresses Utah Jazz floor leader Deron Williams could supplant Jason Kidd in the starting lineup. Toronto’s Chris Bosh could also be the starting center depending on matchups as he’s better at running the floor than Howard, who’s a more traditional “big man”. Overall, the depth of talent is insane—All Stars like Carlos Boozer and Tayshaun Prince haven’t seen much playing time as of yet and any team that can relegate them to “role players” is downright scary.

The advantage of NBA players on the Olympic team will manifest itself immediately against China, as this matchup is expected to be viewed by over 1 billion people. That could intimidate younger, less experienced players but if anything should serve as a catalyst to the likes of Kobe and LeBron. Though the international media with their open belligerence to the NBA All-Star squad turn Olympic team won’t say it, the pressure in this matchup should be squarely on the host Chinese team. For the American pros, its “showtime” (with apologies to the Magic Johnson era Lakers and boxing announcer Jimmy Lennon, Jr.).

And for all of the navel gazing coverage of the perceived weaknesses of the US team—their unfamiliarity with international rules, their lack of cohesion as a team, poor free throw shooting, etc.—the reality is that they’re going to be tough to beat. They might not be able to match the dominance of the 1992 “Dream Team” and their almost unfathomable 41+ PPG average margin of victory, but they should coast to the gold medal assuming they maintain intensity and focus. The trendy picks are Greece and Spain, but the bottom line is that while these are quality teams the US squad is likely the best collection of basketball talent on the planet. If this talent plays within the team concept, they’re almost unbeatable.