Kobe Bryant respected the opposition so much that he often went to games with Coach K so he could see the strengths and weaknesses of the guy he was going to defend. There is no way that Michael Jordan would agree to give up his gambling nights to watch Toni Kukoc or Allen Iverson with Sarunas Jasikevicius.
In fact, Larry Brown probably wouldn’t watch any of the international teams either.
Not too long ago, there was an idea of possibly bringing back college players to the Olympics because of the unselfishness they would bring to the games. That idea is absurd mainly because it would insult the rest of the world and a team full of college players would have no chance at winning a medal.
More importantly, this team has shown that a bunch of all-stars who make millions of dollars a year can play together and put aside their egos.
Team USA may have been redeemed by winning the gold medal, but it needs to win the FIBA World Championships and 2012 Olympics before it can truly say that U.S. basketball is on top of the world.
Winning the World Championships isn’t going to be as glamorous as winning the gold medal, but the U.S. should be equally as hungry to win in 2010. The last time the Americans have won the World Championships was 1994.
Team USA lost two of the last three tournaments because they didn’t respect the opponent, but would’ve won in 1998 if the lockout didn’t prevent NBA players from participating.
Besides, the U.S. is too good to have to play in the Tournament of the Americas where a team of college players could finish in the top two competing against teams like Venezuela and Uruguay.
Some sports columnists have been so naïve as to say that Colangelo reached his goal by winning the gold medal and should resign as the Managing Director. But he understands that the world is constantly catching up to the U.S. and it will have to expect three-year commitments from every roster as long as the Olympics carry basketball as a sport.
It’s because he understands that this year was not the finish line, but the beginning of an era where the world’s best players have to prove that they are the best every two years.
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