Dream Team Documentary: Why Inside Look Proves No Squad Will Ever Be Their Equal
It is impossible to ever assemble a team like the 1992 Dream Team again. That statement has as much to do with the intangible factors as it does with the obvious talent of the squad.
The squad was bigger than their talent on the floor, and The Dream Team documentary (which premiered Wednesday night) conveys that perfectly. If you think the Miami Heat get a lot of attention, then multiply that by 10 and remove all the hate.
That would accurately capture who the Dream Team were to most of the world.
They Were Rock Stars
When the opposing teams are lining up to take photos with you before and after you thrash them, that's saying something. That was commonplace for this team, as most teams from around the world were simply in awe of them.
It was like an amateur guitarist in a picking contest with Jimi Hendrix. They knew they would lose, and in the end, they were just happy to have played on the same stage.
Take a look at this adoration: At the 53-second mark, one of the opposing players is taking pictures from the sidelines.
That mentality doesn't make for a very competitive atmosphere, but the Dream-Teamers took care of that in practice.
Bragging Rights
A full collection of this team's practices would be more entertaining than the last 10 All-Star games. The documentary shows how competitive and compelling these games were.
Imagine Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan barking at each other as they command their squads. Fun-loving or not, that is what basketball is about, and I would have paid money to be there.
That's what happens when you have two ultra-competitive leaders on one team. The practices can be more of a spectacle than the games, and it certainly appears that that was the case here.
Drama
From Scottie Pippen and Michael Jordan blackballing Isiah Thomas from the team to Charles Barkley elbowing an Angolan player in the chest, this team had its share of drama. Barkley's elbow happens at the 3:40 mark:
The documentary covers these instances in detail. The elbow was just Chuck being Chuck, but seeing the former Bulls stars discuss shutting the door on their Detroit Pistons rival is must-see TV.
We all know these very human elements exist in the basketball world, but how often do we get a chance to watch it, or receive first-hand accounts? Sprinkle in the fact that we're talking about drama involving the greatest player of all-time, and that creates even more intrigue.
They Were Really Good, Too
All of the drama, bragging rights and camera flicks wouldn't have been present if they weren't so damn good. All but one player from this roster is a Hall of Famer. The lone collegiate player included—Christian Laettner isn't a Hall of Famer, but he is one of the greatest collegiate players in history, and he was no slouch in the NBA.
For the first seven years of his career, you could almost pencil in 18 points and eight rebounds for him. He averaged just under 13 points and seven rebounds per game in his 14-year career.
Among the rest of the squad, there is a total of 23 championship rings and 15 MVP awards. There was no way they weren't going to add gold medals to that line of hardware. This is a nice top 10 plays from the Dream Team:
They beat opponents by just under 44 points per game, which is an Olympic record, and set the standard for dominance in international play.
Jordan said it best in the documentary: "It will never be duplicated."
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