USA vs. Argentina: Argentinians Who Must Step Up in Upset Bid

If the Argentinians can find a way to upset the USA in their upcoming Olympic exhibition game, it would easily be the biggest story heading into the Olympics. 

However, if Argentina wants to pull off the massive upset it will need a tremendous effort from a few of its stars.

The American team is filled with NBA superstars, so there is now way that the Argentinian team can keep up with the overall depth of USA, but a strong effort from their biggest stars will give them a heads up on upsetting the USA and giving them a huge boost of momentum heading into pool play.

Here are the best candidates to step up and at the very least give the USA some trouble before the real games start.

Luis Scola

The Argentinian roster doesn't have too many players with NBA experience, but Scola has five years in the association to his name and figures to be very relevant for the Argentinians as they try to exploit a lack of depth along the front line for USA.

Scola is a serviceable big man with scoring ability both in the post and with his mid-range game. If the Argentinians want to attack the inside, they will need to go through Scola. If he can score points in the paint, that will allow Argentina's three-point threats to get open on the outside.

Manu Ginobili

The 2012 games could be the final chapter of Ginobili's international career as he is now 35 years old. 

Ginobili, easily the biggest star on the Argentinian team, led the team to its 2004 Olympic gold medal victory over the USA, and he'll need the best performance of his life to duplicate that feat again as this USA team is much better than the 2004 incarnation.

That being said, Ginobili can score with just about anyone when he's on top of his game, and a big effort from him will go a long way in making the Argentinians a viable threat.

Juan Gutierrez

Gutierrez may not have the NBA experience of Scola or Ginobili, but he will be just as important if the Argentinians have a shot at pulling off the upset. Gutierrez is a 6'9" PF/C and will need to provide additional scoring along with Scola on the inside.

In the 2012 South American Championships, Gutierrez averaged 10 points per game on 60 percent shooting. If the Argentinians can get Gutierrez involved early and often, they could have a scoring tandem inside that really opens things up for Ginobili on the wing.