London 2012: Breaking Down the Biggest Storylines

1. Redemption For USA Women's Soccer

Women's athletics have come a long way in the past twenty years, and last summer's Women's World Cup was the apex of their ascent into cultural respectability.

Crude, misogynistic jokes took a backseat as Americans–man and woman alike–donned the Stars and Stripes, and gathered around their TV sets to watch an engrossing tournament.

True, most men initially tuned in just to drool over Hope Solo and Alex Morgan. But they would soon be captivated by the event's competitive spirit, and the surprising similarity between the women's game and the men's game.

Besides, tons of girls initially tune into the Super Bowl just to fawn over Tom Brady (or if they're a little shallower, Rob Gronkowski).

With the momentum women's soccer collected last summer, the 2012 Olympic competition should be the main event of the London Games.

Unlike the men (who bring their U-23 teams), the women bring their senior national teams to the Olympics. Which means another summer in the spotlight for American icons like Solo, Morgan, Abby Wambach and Meghan Rapinoe.

It also means they could once again share the field with the electrifying Marta, the insufferable Erika and the rest of Team Brazil.

Or how about a potential shot at redemption against Sawa and the upstart Japanese side who stole the Cup from them in penalties?

The women's soccer tournament is ripe with talented teams and captivating storylines, which could make it the world's blue-ribbon sporting event for the second consecutive summer.

2. Team USA Defends Basketball Gold

2008's "Redeem Team" didn't brutally obliterate its opponents as America's infamous 1992 squad did, but they did make amends for their embarrassing display in Athens by taking home the gold.

But as the game of basketball rapidly expands southward and eastward, the rest of the world gains significant ground on the Americans with every passing tournament.

And this year, there will be more NBA-saturated rosters than ever before.

Spain will suit up Jose Calderon, Rudy Fernandez, Serge Ibaka and both Gasol brothers. France can trot out Tony Parker, Nicolas Batum, Boris Diaw and Joakim Noah. Argentina can attack with Manu Ginobilli and Luis Scola. Brazil can take you inside out with Leondro Barbosa, Nene and Anderson Varejao. Lithuania has former players like Linas Kleiza and lottery picks like Jonas Valanciunas.

The list goes on and on.

America will have to be at their best in London, as gold is far from a sure thing.

Here's another potential story to watch: How will USA fans feel about LeBron James and Dwayne Wade?

A lot has changed between the Beijing Olympics and the London Olympics. James and Wade have gone from national treasures to nefarious punchlines. Americans—and I mean almost —have become used to rooting against LeBron and Wade unconditionally.

But we're also habituated to rooting for our country unconditionally.

Where does our true allegiance lie? It'll be fun to see.

3. Record-Breaking Encores

Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt both stole the show in Beijing.

Phelps broke Mark Spitz's seemingly immortal record of seven gold medals in one Olympiad.

Usain Bolt high-stepped his way to world records in the 100- and 200-meter sprints.

And together, they made the 2008 Olympics one of the most unforgettable spectacles in modern athletic history.

But how the hell are they supposed to follow that up?

Bolt and Phelps are now four years older than they were during their (presumed) physical primes from 2008. And while both of them had continued to have success in international competition, they've both shown far more vulnerability than they did during their infallible run-ups to the Beijing Games.

These guys are two of the most ruthless competitors in the history of the world, so you can bet they'll bring their best stuff to London.

Now we just need to see if their best stuff is still ample.

4. USA-China Women's Gymnastics Rivalry

The 2008 women's gymnastic competition got personal.

Controversy was rife, with allegations that the Chinese had snuck underage competitors into the Games by forging birth documents. Some argued for them to forfeit their gold in the team all-around competition, but to no avail.

Even so, the Americans were able to take gold and silver in the individual all-around competition, thanks to the heroic performances of Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson.

The rivalry got more intense in the 2011 World Championships as newcomer Jordyn Weber took home gold in the individual all-around and led the USA to the team all-around title.

Weber is the future of Olympic gymnastics, but the 16-year-old has never had to deal with this level of notoriety and pressure before.

If she can perform like she did in the 2011 Championships, the Americans should sweep the gold. But if not, the Chinese, along with the Japanese, Russians and Romanians, will be waiting in the wings to snatch it up.