Olympic Basketball 2012: Predicting Outcomes of Every USA Men's Basketball Game

Team USA's 2012 pursuit of Olympic gold is about to begin, and the road to immortality isn't as easy as it may seem.

USA will face off against top teams like France, Lithuania and Argentina in the preliminary round of the 2012 Olympic games, and if the Americans can make it out of their pool, the competition will get much more difficult from there.

Potential opponents after the preliminary round like Spain, Brazil and China all have the potential to dethrone USA, and it's certainly going to be interesting to see how USA responds to the adversity it'll face.

Ahead is a prediction of every preliminary game for Team USA heading into the 2012 Olympics.

Note: All times British Summer Time.

USA vs. France: Sunday, July 29 at 2:30 P.M.

France's Fiercest Competitor: Tony Parker, PG, San Antonio Spurs

FIBA World Ranking: 12th 

France will certainly be a tough test for Team USA as it looks to kick off the 2012 Olympic games with a dominant and impressive win.

Of all the teams that Team USA will face this summer, France arguably has the most impressive NBA talent. It has five legitimate NBA players in Tony Parker, Kevin Seraphin, Nicolas Batum, Boris Diaw and Ronny Turiaf.

While that talent is nowhere on the same level as Team USA, France will be able to give USA a challenge in its first game. The biggest key to shutting down France will be forcing it to beat USA out on the perimeter.

France's biggest strength is its frontcourt depth, and if USA wants to win, it'll need to keep guys like Turiaf, Parker and Batum out of the paint. Seeing that Team USA is 52-1 since coach Mike Krzyzewski has taken over, I think it's safe to say that it'll be able to do that and come out with a big win to get things started on its search for gold.

Score Prediction: USA 101, France 81

USA vs. Tunisia: Tuesday, July 31 at 10:15 P.M.

Tunisia's Fiercest Competitor: Mehdi Hafsi, F, ESSM Le Portel

FIBA World Ranking: 32nd

Tunisia is going to have its hands full with Team USA—there's no doubt about that.

While Tunisia did enough to qualify for the Olympic games, it is one of the worst teams in USA's pool, and it is a team that USA will undoubtedly dominate.

In the 2010 FIBA World Championship, Tunisia lost all five of its games and finished last in its group. That doesn't bode well for one of Africa's premier Olympic teams.

Tunisia will be overwhelmed by every aspect of Team USA. The Americans' speed, strength, efficiency and consistency will be too much for the African team to handle, and that will be at the foundation of an absolutely dominant performance by USA.

Score Prediction: USA 111, Tunisia 62

USA vs. Nigeria: Thursday, August 2 at 10:15 P.M.

Nigeria's Fiercest Competitor: Al-Farouq Aminu, F, New Orleans Hornets

FIBA World Ranking: 21st

Nigeria didn't have the easiest path to the 2012 Olympics. It had to take down a heavily favored Greece national team and followed that up with a win over an impressive Dominican Republic team. 

With that being said, Nigeria is a team that USA absolutely shouldn't sleep on, because if it does, Nigeria could squeak out a shocking win.

Led by Al-Farouq Aminu, Nigeria is an extremely athletic and agile team that wins games with suffocating defense on the perimeter and by pushing the pace in transition. USA will need to slow Nigeria down, and the best way to do that is by imposing its will on Nigeria early and often.

LeBron James will be the key in this one for Team USA, as he has the strength and versatility that no one on Nigeria will have an answer for. USA will struggle, but it'll find a way to beat Nigeria and keep its winning streak alive.

Score Prediction: USA 94, Nigeria 82

USA vs. Lithuania: Saturday, August 4 at 2:30 P.M.

Lithuania's Fiercest Competitor: Jonas Valanciunas, C, Toronto Raptors

FIBA World Ranking: Fifth 

Lithuania's greatest strength is undoubtedly its frontcourt tandem of Jonas Valanciunas and Linas Kleiza, who will both be playing for the Toronto Raptors during the 2012-13 season.

Aside from Kleiza and Valanciunas, Lithuania doesn't have much depth, and that will ultimately be the reason for its demise.

While Brazil was able to expose Team USA's lack of frontcourt depth early on in their exhibition game, USA was able to counter and respond by amping up its defense, and that's exactly what it'll do against Lithuania in its fourth game of the 2012 Olympics.

Playing Lithuania will be more of a tune-up for USA than an actual challenge, and that will be most evident once it starts running in transition off turnovers created by its dominant defense.

USA will flourish in its final game before taking on one of the fiercest competitors in its pool in Argentina.

Score Prediction: USA 109, Lithuania 79

USA vs. Argentina: Monday, August 6 at 10:15 P.M.

Argentina's Fiercest Competitor: Manu Ginobili, SG, San Antonio Spurs

FIBA World Ranking: Third

Argentina is a team that could certainly give USA a run for its money. Not only does it have a fearless leader in Manu Ginobili, but it also has a star in the frontcourt with Luis Scola.

USA will have to bring its "A game" if it wants to hang with Argentina, mainly because Argentina plays like a very cohesive unit, and that's an extremely dangerous quality of its game.

To knock out Argentina, USA will absolutely have to contain Ginobili. Not only is he Argentina's leader, but he's also the player that makes its offense go round, and locking him down means success for USA.

While this one will come down to the wire, USA will ultimately come out on top because its depth is unparalleled, and that will be at the foundation of USA being able to pull away late in the fourth quarter—moving on from its pool undefeated.

Score Prediction: USA 90, Argentina 82

Pool B Teams That Could Give USA Problems After Preliminary Rounds

Spain: Led by Pau Gasol, PF, L.A. Lakers 

FIBA World Ranking: Second 

Spain is without a doubt the biggest obstacle standing in Team USA's way of an "easy" run at 2012 Olympic gold.

Not only does Spain have a fearsome frontcourt duo of Pau and Marc Gasol, but it also has Rudy Fernandez and Jose Calderon in the backcourt, which will provide Spain with depth that most international teams don't have.

Beating Spain will come down to how well USA can keep the Gasol brothers out of the paint. LeBron could have to lock down Pau in the paint, and if he does that, it could be quite a memorable moment not only for USA, but also for LeBron and his ability to lead Team USA.

Brazil: Led by Nene Hilario, C, Washington Wizards

FIBA World Ranking: 13th 

Brazil gave USA fits in their exhibition game, and it did so by imposing its will on USA early and often deep in the paint. While USA countered with suffocating defense, there's no doubt that Brazil has the pieces needed to compete with USA.

The biggest question surrounding Brazil and its ability to take down the mighty USA is whether its backcourt can carry the offensive production when USA shifts its focus to shutting down Brazil's frontcourt.

USA already beat Brazil, but I'm guessing that Brazil didn't pull out all the stops in its exhibition game with USA. If both teams meet after the preliminary rounds, this matchup will look incredibly different than the one that took place just a week or two ago, and it's one that Brazil could end up winning.