USA Olympic Basketball: What Every Dream Team Would Have Been from 1976-2012

C: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar / Dave Cowens / Bob McAdoo

PF: Bill Walton / Elvin Hayes

SF: Julius Erving / John Havlicek

SG: David Thompson / George Gervin / Doug Collins

PG: Nate Archibald / Walt Frazier

Reserves: Dan Issel, Artis Gilmore, Dave Bing

Honorable Mentions: Wes Unseld , Jo Jo White

The 1975-76 season was the last before the NBA-ABA merger. What better way would there have been to celebrate the merger and avenge the 1972 loss against the Soviet Union than to put the best from both of those leagues on one team? The combination of Abdul-Jabbar and Walton at their best along with Dr. J and Thompson on the wings would have been an unstoppable force.There would have been little drop-off with a Hall of Fame second unit.

The biggest question mark for this team would be a second point guard. This was not a strong point guard group overall, but a combo guard like Frazier would have been effective in this role.

1980 Dream Team

C: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar / Jack Sikma

PF: Moses Malone / Elvis Hayes

SF: Julius Erving / Larry Bird / Adrian Dantley

SG: George Gervin / Paul Westphal / Dennis Johnson

PG: Magic Johnson / Michael Ray Richardson

Reserves: Dan Issel, Nate Archibald, Marques Johnson

Honorable Mentions: Wes Unseld, Maurice Lucas, Otis Birdsong, Walter Davis, Lloyd Free

The big man depth is not as impressive as the previous edition, but the starting lineup is even more intriguing. Kareem is once again the pivot and Malone joins him in the lineup a season removed from his first MVP award. Magic Johnson would get a lot of easy assists with Erving and Gervin in the lineup and Bird coming off the bench as a sixth man. Only an Olympic boycott would have stopped this team from winning the gold medal in Moscow.

1984 Dream Team

C: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar / Robert Parish

PF: Moses Malone / Kevin McHale

SF: Larry Bird / Alex English / Julius Erving

SG: Michael Jordan / Adrian Dantley / George Gervin

PG: Magic Johnson / Isiah Thomas

Reserves: Ralph Sampson, Bernard King, Sidney Moncrief

Honorable Mentions: Bill Laimbeer, Jack Sikma, Patrick Ewing (college player), Terry Cummings, Tom Chambers, Buck WIlliams, Kiki Vandeweghe, Dominique Wilkins, James Worthy, Bobby Jones, Jim Paxson, Kelly Tripucka, Andrew Toney, Maurice Cheeks, Walter Davis, Mark Aguirre, Otis Birdsong

It's not a quite a super-combination of the Celtics, Lakers and Sixers (BosAngelesDelphia?), but more than half the roster is made up of players from those teams, which had combined to win the last four NBA titles.

Kareem and Moses once again would form an unstoppable presence up front. Johnson and Bird were in their primes, and Jordan was about to unleash his dominance on the NBA hardwood.

One has to wonder if Thomas would have tried to "freeze out" this rookie phenom like he did in the 1985 All-Star Game. 

The second unit would have had a great floor general with Thomas and strong defense up front with Parish and McHale, as well as more than enough scoring off the bench. It was a golden era at the time for the high-scoring swingman, and this team would have included many from that era, such as Dantley, who was coming off his fourth straight season averaging more than 30 points per game. There's enough depth at this position to keep Bernard King from making the 12-man roster.

The talent pool from 1984 might have been the deepest ever. This may be the only team on the entire list that is better then or that could at least rivaled the 1992 team. There's even enough leftover talent from this era to make a stellar B-team.

C: Ralph Sampson / Bill Laimbeer

PF: Jack Sikma / Buck Williams / Terry Cummings

SF: Bernard King / Kik Vandeweghe

SG: Mark Aguirre / Sidney Moncrief / Andrew Toney

PG: Maurice Cheeks / Walter Davis

1988 Dream Team

C: Patrick Ewing / Moses Malone

PF: Karl Malone / Charles Barkley / Kevin McHale

SF: Larry Bird / Dominique Wilkins / James Worthy

SG: Michael Jordan / Clyde Drexler

PG: Magic Johnson / Isiah Thomas

Reserves: Brad Daugherty, Alex English, Mark Aguirre

Honorable Mentions: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Robert Parish, James Donaldson, Terry Cummings, Tom Chambers,Buck Williams, Rolando Blackman, Chris Mullin, Paul Pressey,  Maurice Cheeks, Alvin Robertson, Doc Rivers, Fat Lever

The 1988 Olympics were the last to feature only "amateurs" before the Dream Team era was ushered in four years later. This squad that featured seven members from that 1992 team would have had little trouble getting past an "amateur" Soviet Union team with the likes Arvydas Sabonis and Šarūnas Marčiulionis.

There are two omissions from this team that must be mentioned. Hakeem Olajuwon and Len Bias. Olajuwon was ineligible for this team because he wasn't a U.S. citizen at the time (he received his citizenship in 1993). Bias would likely have been a candidate for this team and future Olympic squads had he not died of a drug overdose in 1986 before playing a single NBA game.

1992 Dream Team

C: Patrick Ewing / David Robinson / Shaquille O'Neal

PF: Charles Barkely / Karl Malone

SF: Larry Bird / Scottie Pippen / Chris Mullin

SG: Michael Jordan / Clyde Drexler

PG: Magic Johnson / John Stockton

Reserves: Brad Daugherty, Dominique WIilkins, Kevin Johnson

Honorable Mentions: Shawn Kemp, Tom Chambers, Dennis Rodman, James Worthy, Dan Majerle, Joe Dumars, Mitch Richmond, Tim Hardaway, Isiah Thomas, Mark Price

It's hard to make a change to this team, but even the greatest collection of talent wasn't perfect. Christian Laettner should never have made this team in the first place over a more deserving candidate like O'Neal or Wilkins. Since Hakeem Olajuwon was ineligible for this team, Shaq gets the final spot for what was the original Dream Team.

1996 Dream Team

C: Shaquille O'Neal / Hakeem Olajuwon / David Robinson

PF: Karl Malone / Shawn Kemp

SF: Grant Hill / Scottie Pippen

SG: Michael Jordan / Penny Hardaway / Reggie Miller

PG: John Stockton / Gary Payton

Reserves: Alonzo Mourning, Glen Rice, Tim Hardaway

Honorable Mentions: Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley Vin Baker, Sean Elliot, Latrell Sprewell, Clyde Drexler, Mitch Richmond, Jason Kidd

This Dream Team edition would have had a well-balanced roster and mix of aging stars from the 1980s and the young stars of the 1990s. The three-headed monster of O'Neal, Olajuwon and Robinson at center would have been a nightmare for others teams to handle in Atlanta. That's in addition Jordan; the pick-and-roll of duo of Malone and Stockton; Hill and Kemp's athleticism; excellent defense from Payton and Pippen; and bench scoring from Hardaway and Miller.

2000 Dream Team

C: Shaquille O'Neal / Alonzo Mourning

PF: Tim Duncan / Kevin Garnett / Chris Webber

SF: Grant Hill / Tracy McGrady

SG: Kobe Bryant / Allen Iverson / Vince Carter

PG: Jason Kidd / Gary Payton

Reserves: Rasheed Wallace, Antoine Walker, Allan Houston

Honorable Mentions: David Robinson, Karl Malone, Antonio McDyess, Elton Brand, Glenn Robinson, Jamal Mashburn, Latrell Sprewell, Jerry Stackhouse, Paul Pierce, Michael Finley, Eddie Jones, Ray Allen, Reggie Miller, Steve Francis, John Stockton, Tim Hardaway

This team would have marked an unofficial end to the Dream Team era and the beginning of what would become the Shaq and Kobe/Duncan era in NBA history. 

Imagine how effective a frontline of Shaq, Duncan and Garnett would have been with Kidd setting them up for easy lay-ups and dunks.

Even with the second retirement of Michael Jordan, this was the beginning of arguably the most talented shooting guard era in NBA history, as evidenced by the depth at the 2 and 3 positions, as well as the players on the honorable mention list. With Kobe, A.I., Vinsanity and T-Mac on the team, scoring from the wing positions would not have been a problem.

2004 Dream Team

C: Shaquille O'Neal / Ben Wallace

PF: Tim Duncan / Kevin Garnett / Jermaine O'Neal

SF: Tracy McGrady / Paul Pierce / Shawn Marion

SG: Kobe Bryant / Ray Allen

PG: Jason Kidd / Allen Iverson

Reserves: Rasheed Wallace, Ron Artest, Chauncey Billups

Honorable Mentions: Brad Miller, Elton Brand, Kenyon Martin, Antawn Jamison, Tayshaun Price, Rashard Lewis, Gilbert Arenas, Michael Redd, Richard Hamilton, Vince Carter, Steve Francis, Baron Davis, Mike Bibby

Seven holdovers from the previous team in a group that would undoubtedly play better than the actual 2004 Olympic team. This group may not have won all their games by margin of victories as large as years past, but this team would not have lost three games and finished in third place.

The frontcourt is once again formidable with Shaq, Duncan and Garnett in the starting five and second unit with reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year, Ben Wallace along with Jermaine O'Neal and Shawn Marion.

Bryant and McGrady would have been a great one-two scoring punch, and Kidd is the easy choice to be the starting point guard. Iverson was primarily a shooting guard during his time with the Philadelphia 76ers, but he's a better option as a second point guard than Francis or Davis. His point guard skills were always underrated because of his four scoring titles.

2008 Dream Team

C: Dwight Howard / Amar'e Stoudemire

PF: Tim Duncan / Kevin Garnett / Chris Bosh

SF: Lebron James / Carmelo Anthony

SG: Kobe Bryant / Dwyane Wade

PG: Chris Paul / Deron Williams / Jason Kidd

Reserves: Carlos Boozer, Paul Pierce, Chauncey Billups

Honorable Mentions: Shaquille O'Neal, Tyson Chandler, David West, Antawn Jamison, Tayshaun Prince, Shawn Marion, Joe Johnson, Ray Allen, Richard Hamilton, Brandon Roy, Gilbert Arenas, Baron Davis

There's not much to change about the Redeem Team, except for it's lack of big man depth. After Howard, only Bosh and Boozer were available off the bench. Stoudemire declined an invitation to play in Beijing, as did Duncan and Garnett. All three of them probably would have played on the team together if they wanted to.

2012 Dream Team

C: Dwight Howard / Kevin Love

PF: Kevin Durant / Blake Griffin / Chris Bosh

SF: Lebron James / Carmelo Anthony

SG: Kobe Bryant / Dwyane Wade

PG: Chris Paul / Derrick Rose / Deron Williams

Reserves: LaMarcus Aldridge, Rudy Gay, Russel Westbrook

Honorable Mentions: Tyson Chandler, Andrew Bynum, Roy Hibbert, Joakim Noah, Al Jefferson, Paul Millsap Lamar Odom, Joe Johnson, Andre Iguodala, Stephen Curry, Eric Curry, Monta Ellis, Rajon Rondo, Chauncey Billups, Kyle Lowry, John Wall

The roster for this summer's team seems all but set and is already drawing comparisons to the 1992 team.

Eight players (Howard, Bosh, James, Anthony, Bryant, Wade, Paul and Williams) will return from the 2008 team; Durant is a shoo-in after his performance in the 2010 World Championships and so is Rose after his MVP season.

That leaves two spots left that will likely be filled by big men. Love's not the best defensive player in the NBA, but his outside shooting ability makes his ideal for international play. That narrows down the final spot to Griffin or Aldridge. Griffin will likely get that final spot because of his popularity, making Aldridge the top player on Team USA's scout team.