USA Olympic Basketball Team: Projected Final 12-Man Roster and Their Roles

The 2012 NBA Finals just ended, but LeBron James and Kevin Durant know they aren't done with basketball for the summer. They are both going to be chasing more hardware, this time overseas, and now they will be teammates. 

Team USA will once again be expected to take home the gold in London, and once again the USA Olympic Committee needs to be prudent and careful with whom it selects, lest risk a disaster like in Athens back in 2004.

Here is who I believe needs to make to the team, and what role they should each play on the team. There are some tough omissions near the end, but they are for the greater good.  

Chris Bosh

Chris Bosh has certainly been the butt of a lot of jokes throughout the season. He doesn't really get the respect he's due, but after watching him play so well during the Finals, I'm not so sure he shouldn't compete for a starting job on this team.

Unfortunately, at power forward he'll be competing with the incumbent starter, Carmelo Anthony, and perhaps his own teammate, LeBron James. I'll instead slide Bosh as the seventh man off the bench, logging minutes at the 4 and 5.

He's showed some big-time defensive tenacity in the Finals, and I feel comfortable matching him up with the likes of Pau Gasol or his brother, Marc. His proficiency in the pick-and-pop game and ability to hit the 20-footer makes him a very valuable piece of the Team USA rotation. 

Role: Second sub off of the bench, playing both the four and five. 

Carmelo Anthony

We talked about Bosh being the seventh guy off the bench, because although I think highly of Bosh as sub, Carmelo Anthony is the sixth man of the team, and toughest omission from the starting lineup.

Here's my logic: They two other guys who play the forward spots are LeBron James and Kevin Durant. One just proved he's the best player alive in the Finals, and the other one was the alpha dog of the 2010 World Championship team and is perfect for the international game. 

Now, Carmelo is a volume scorer. He's not a complementary guy. I wouldn't want him playing off-ball from LeBron or Durant. It somewhat worked during the 2008 Olympics because LeBron was more of a facilitator and Carmelo shot it so well.

Carmelo can score with the best of them, and I can't think of anyone better to lead my second unit. When Durant and LeBron are on the bench, I want the offense to run through him, and he'll have good chunks of games where he's USA's No. 1 option on offense.

Role: Sixth man, James Harden-type role 

Kevin Durant

He looks sad in that photo, but he won't be on Team USA. Kevin Durant is going to learn first-hand what helped Miami's three-point parade close out his Oklahoma City Thunder. LeBron James has a magnetic quality about him when he drives the basket, and international defenders will surely be keying on him.

And Kevin Durant, for once in his life, will not be the guy everyone crowds on. He'll be shooting so many open jumpers he might actually miss because he's just not used to being so open. 

Durant will be a starter. He won't be asked to specifically facilitate, drive, or defend anyone but his role will be to shoot the lights out of the ball. Again, he'll be starting on a unit that includes LeBron, Kobe Bryant, and Chris Paul. He's going to get open, a lot.

Also, there was a debate about who would be the alpha dog on Team USA. Some would have said it's Durant, and this may have created a controversy, like it almost did in the 2008 Beijing Finals. Well, LeBron's team just beat Durant's in the Finals, and you get the sense that everyone will defer to the newly minted Finals MVP. 

Role: No.2 scoring option, starter, spot-up shooter, and alpha-dog unless LeBron is on the floor.  

Chris Paul

It's a shame Derrick Rose is hurt, because he would be at this spot if he wasn't. Rajon Rondo withdrew—probably a good thing, because as good as he is, he's an awful fit for the international game. 

This leaves us with a great option anyway. I had a hard time choosing between him and Deron Williams, and I think this is the most debatable spot on the roster. I foresee some absolutely fierce battles in camp for this spot. 

That said, I will pick Paul for this spot because of his winning pedigree. Not that Paul has been to even a Conference Finals, but that he's just amazing at making the best of a mediocre situation. He's always helped New Orleans overachieve, and Memphis was deeper and more experienced than the Clippers in this year's playoffs. 

He and Kobe Bryant form the co-captains of this team, and they are the unquestioned veteran-leaders on the team. Him running pick and rolls with Bosh, lobbing it up for Chandler, or finding Durant open on the elbow for a can't miss twenty footer will have Team USA's offense humming.

Role: Starting point man and co-captain

Kobe Bryant

There is no doubt Mamba is starting, especially now that Dwyane Wade is iffy, and probably sitting out due to knee injury. What is slightly more unclear is his role on the team.

In 2008, Kobe was a bit younger and more reminiscent of his All-First Team Defense player form. Now, Bryant is older and has been getting defensive accolades a bit more on reputation than before. That said, that could be due to the situation he's with on the Lakers.

Coach Mike Krzyzewski loves using a hyper-athletic two-guard as his backcourt defensive stopper, a role Kobe played in Beijing and a tradition of gold-medal winning USA squads dating back to the original Dream Team. I say that this is unclear because Coach K may even try LeBron in this role. However, LeBron has so many more skills that are needed elsewhere in the team.

Role: Starting two guard, facilitator, defensive stopper 

LeBron James

It could be fair to ask who should be the alpha-dog or who will assume the role of "best player" on a team so laden with stars like this. I think we just got proof two days ago who will assume that role.

Yes, I trust LeBron to be "The Guy" when things get tough against Spain or Argentina down the stretch. Although he's not as good a shooter as you'd like, the international game is very friendly to the drive and kick game, and LeBron just dished 13 assists in Game 5 (eight of which went for threes off of a drive). 

Kobe will assume the Magic Johnson role (the older superstar who isn't quite ready to give up his throne yet) and James will assume the Michael Jordan role (the younger superstar who wants to overtake him). I wonder if they shouldn't be making a documentary of the Team Kobe vs Team LeBron scrimmages and all the trash-talking that comes with it.

Role: Starting 4, Alpha Dog, and offensive facilitator

Tyson Chandler

The Knicks were known for a terrible defense under Coach Mike D'Antoni. We add in Tyson Chandler, and he only wins the Defensive Player of the Year and glues up multiple holes in the Knicks defense, making up for two superstars who are allergic to guarding anybody.

We remember that the 2008 Olympic team was successful, and Dwight Howard played a minimal role on offense (only 11 ppg). He doesn't need to do much other than mop up drives to the basket or catch lobs from Chris Paul (he's very familiar with that from his New Orleans stint). The only thing that would hurt could be his less than great free throw shooting percentage, although he has shot 73 percent and 68 percent the last two seasons—much better than Howard did.

Chandler's disciplined, hard-nosed, rim-protecting skills will be a welcome addition to this team. Yes, I think he should start.

Role: Starting centre and paint patroller.

Deron Williams

It might not matter who your nine through twelve is, if your seventh or eighth man in your rotation is Deron Williams. This guy is absolute stud who can shoot the ball, play off guard with Chris Paul, make music with Kobe Bryant in the same backcourt and throw a good amount of lobs himself.

Again, the Deron vs Paul battle in camp could be the most intriguing storyline. Another interesting storyline is where Deron will sign in free agency. Could Kobe use Team USA as a recruiting operation much like D-Wade used it to lure LeBron and Bosh?

I see Deron being the other man who leads the second unit alongside Carmelo when the starting guys aren't playing. If Kobe wasn't on this team, I'd be an advocate for a crunch-time lineup of him and Paul at guards with Bosh, LeBron and Durant on the floor.

Role: Eighth man off the bench, Paul's backup, competitor for the starting spot at PG.  

Kevin Love

I find it beyond a joke that Blake Griffin is even being considered for a spot over this guy. Griffin's game is predicated off of athleticism, which is nullified by the more physical play friendly rules of FIBA basketball. Throw in the fact that he can't shoot a 16 footer to save his life, never mind free throws, doesn't play defense, and we have Amare Stoudemire 2.0 from the 2004 Nightmare team.

 Kevin Love is a rebounding machine, tough, and can shoot the crap out of the ball for a guy his size. If it weren't for Bosh's great Finals performance and Love's somewhat lagging defense, I'd be penciling Love for some major minutes.

He could steal them anyway, though, with his massive frame and immense skills. He's an underrated passer. If he were Spanish or Chinese, they'd revolve their offenses around him, tailoring their roster to get the most out of him.

I love this guy for this team. He is one of the younger guys and there are guys who rightfully deserve to play in front of him. But I wouldn't be surprised if he logs some major minutes.

Role: Wild-card big man, ninth man, potential mainstay in the rotation if he proves himself. 

Anthony Davis

Yeah, he hasn't played one NBA game. Yup, you're right if you wanna talk about how he'll get bullied because of his relatively frail frame by those nasty foreigners. 

As good as Bosh and Love are, I do not trust them when there's a red hot Gasol brothers out there if we can only rely on them to defend the rim and block some shots. Davis' length and height, plus his defensive instincts are something that we can't be missing should Chandler get in foul trouble or gets hurt, god forbid.

The twelfth guy usually doesn't play in an ideal scenario, and the vets could use someone to carry the bags. Plus, I like this experience for the future of the NBA in general. Davis has been a little cocky, already calling out Kobe Bryant. Davis could learn a lot, and it would be a real eye-opener for him to realize that these are the guys that are on the level that the Hornets will expect him to become once they make him the No.1 pick. 

I'd love to see the documentary for Kobe vs LeBron, and CP3 vs Deron Williams. That'd be a classic on the court. It'd also be pretty funny to see Kobe embarrass the rook. 

Role: 12th man, college rookie who gets hazed harder than a fraternity pledge. 

Andre Iguodala

I had James Harden making this team, until he laid that ghastly performance in the NBA Finals. Good lord, he was bad. And if Lamar Odom makes the team I might literally puke myself. 

We need someone to fill the tenth man, Tayshaun Prince role. He needs to be a versatile defender, a great athlete, someone who can play some two, three, possibly the four, and know his role on the team. Andre Iguodala fits that bill as well as anyone that the USA has.

I liked what I saw out of Iggy in the playoffs. He never tried to play too much hero ball, and defended multiple positions and helped will a young Sixers team to a Game 7 against a tough, playoff-proven Celtics team. 

Role: Tenth man, glue guy, someone who can sub in for anyone and knows his role isn't to be a superstar. 

Eric Gordon

It was tough for me to omit such a talented and gifted player like Russell Westbrook. But this was neccessary. You can never have too many good shooters on a successful FIBA team. Westbrook has trouble shooting, isn't a true point guard, and needs to dominate the ball way too much for him to be effective on this team. 

We need someone to fill the Michael Redd shooting role. Eric Gordon has one of the prettiest strokes in the NBA. Unlike Redd, who wasn't athletic enough to keep up with any of the big guards that most foreign teams field, Gordon is a freak athlete. He's just 6'4'' but plays more like he's 6'6'' with how incredibly high he jumps and how quick he moves.

I like him to be a situational player with Durant out there to embarrass any team that tries a zone against us.

Role: 11th man, and designated zone-buster.