Olympics Basketball 2012: Spain and 4 Countries That Will Challenge Team USA

USA men's basketball is once again the favorite to earn gold at the Summer Olympics, though doing so in London will be anything but a walk through Hyde Park. The rest of the international field is as stacked as it's ever been, with just about every participant sporting some measure of NBA experience on its roster.

That's not to suggest that Team USA doesn't deserve its presumptive place at the podium. No other group in London can hold a candle to America's 11 NBA All-Stars and one reigning collegiate Player of the Year (Anthony Davis).

Then again, nobody should expect Mike Krzyzewski's squad to steamroll the competition like the Dream Team did in Barcelona in 1992. This year's edition is loaded with versatile scorers (i.e. Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony) whose games are tailor-made for FIBA rules.

However, Team USA's biggest weakness—its lack of size and depth up front—leaves it susceptible to dry spells when the perimeter shots aren't falling on offense and to winding up on the wrong side of big runs when the rim remains unprotected on defense.

With that in mind, let's have a look at which of the world's other basketball powers have the personnel to exploit America's weaknesses and put its prospects of defending its world title on the rocks.

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Spain

Any discussion of threats to America's hoops hegemony must begin with Spain.

These two countries, which faced each other in an Olympic tune-up on Tuesday won by Team USA 100-78, played for the gold medal in Beijing four years ago. La Roja gave Team USA its toughest test of the tournament, but ultimately came up short, with Dwyane Wade's 27 points on 9-of-12 shooting sealing the deal for the Yanks.

Of course, Wade won't be there to save the day this time around. Neither will Dwight Howard nor Chris Bosh, who held down the interior against the Spaniards.

That leaves Chandler to handle the All-Star duo of Pau and Marc Gasol, not to mention shot-blocking specialist Serge Ibaka, who's playing in his first major international tournament with Spain.

Those three, along with veteran forward Felipe Reyes, allow Spain to run a more NBA-style, inside-out offense, with Jose Calderon, Rudy Fernandez and Juan Carlos Navarro—all of whom have played in The Association—stretching the floor with their ball handling and outside shooting.

Ibaka aside, the Spaniards have collective experience in their corner. The core of the team has won each of the last two European championships, taken home gold at the 2006 FIBA World Championships and, of course, earned silver in Beijing.

Spain will miss Ricky Rubio to some extent, though the rookie sensation for the Minnesota Timberwolves—out of the Olympics with a knee injury—was never a focal point of the Spanish game plan to begin with.

And, to the Americans' credit, they have the speed and versatility up and down their roster to neutralize Spain's size inside.

But if any squad is primed to knock Team USA off its Olympic pedestal, it's Spain.

Argentina

Argentina almost did just that on Sunday, albeit in an essentially meaningless exhibition in Barcelona.

Not that doing so would've been anything new for the Albiceleste's current "Golden Generation." The Argentines knocked Team USA out of the Athens Olympics in 2004 on the way to the gold medal, with the likes of Manu Ginobili, Luis Scola, Andres Nocioni, Fabricio Oberto and Carlos Delfino leading the way.

Oberto has since retired, and New York Knicks-bound point guard Pablo Prigioni has been with the senior squad since 2006.

But where some see a group that's "wise" or "experienced" on the international stage, others point to a collection of highly-decorated hoopsters who are too old to give chase to a feisty, young bunch like Team USA. As it happens, the 33-year-old Kobe Bryant is the only man on the American team over 30, while Argentina's starting lineup averages 33 years of age.

Still, as Argentina showed this past weekend, they're well-equipped to take advantage of Team USA's dry spells and unafraid to do so when the opportunity knocks. Throw in a dose of physical and mental toughness and Argentina looks like a team that USA Basketball would be foolish to take lightly in its own group.

Brazil

The bigger South American threat to Team USA, though, may well be Brazil.

Interestingly enough, Ruben Magnano, the current coach of the Brazilian team, was the man behind Argentina's "Golden Generation," leading them to Olympic gold in 2004. Magnano signed on with Argentina's continental rivals in 2010, and has since instilled a greater sense of order and organization on the court where chaos once reigned supreme.

It helps, too, that Brazil has turned out its fair share of NBA talent in recent years. The frontcourt, in particular, features a trio of battle-tested big men—Nene, Tiago Splitter and Anderson Varejao—who aren't afraid to bang on the inside, where Team USA is most vulnerable.

But what Brazil lacks in skill on the interior, it more than makes up for on the perimeter. Marcelo Huertas (otherwise known as Marcelinho) runs the whole operation and is widely considered one of the best guards in Europe today.

He'll be joined in the backcourt by NBA veteran and noted speed demon Leandro Barbosa as well as Alex Garcia, whose funky shooting motion was pure enough to put Brazil in position to scare the Americans in DC last week.

The biggest obstacle for Brazil will likely come from Team USA's relentless defensive pressure, particularly at the guard position. The Americans managed to take control in their 80-69 win by forcing 23 Brazilian turnovers, 19 of which came on steals.

That being said, if size does matter, then the Americans will have their work cut out for them if they should meet Brazil in the knockout rounds. 

Russia

Size is everything for Russia, whose entire starting lineup is 6'6 or taller. Four of those starters—Andrei Kirilenko, Timofey Mozgov, Alexey Shved and Viktor Khryapa—have some connection to the NBA.

The focal point of the team, though, is clearly Kirilenko. The versatile forward, formerly of the Utah Jazz, had a banner year with CSKA Moscow last season on the way to being named the Euroleague MVP. He's playing as well as he ever has and could give Team USA's stable of swingmen fits.

Still, as big as the Russians are across the board, they lack the level of skill needed to put significant pressure on the Americans. Shved, who's slated to join the Minnesota Timberwolves this coming season, is the only guard of note who might be able to handle Coach K's pressure defense.

And for all the size that Mozgov and former Kansas star Sasha Kaun bring to the table, neither is exactly a dynamo down low.

The Russians have the talent to medal, just not at Team USA's expense.

France

If there's any sleeper of which Team USA should beware in the Olympics, it's France.

The French are back in the Olympic mix for the first time since 2000, thanks in large part to a surprisingly impressive contingent of NBA talent. Tony Parker will be on hand to lead the way after nearly withdrawing from the tournament on account of an eye injury suffered during the infamous nightclub scuffle between Drake and Chris Brown.

He'll be joined by fellow stateside veterans Nicolas Batum, Ronny Turiaf and Boris Diaw, along with up-and-comer Kevin Seraphin.

The French also have tormer NBA benchwarmers Mickael Gelabale and Yakhouba Diawara as well as Florent Pietrus, the older brother of well-traveled swingman Mickael Pietrus.

Batum and Diaw both give France a crucial dose of versatility—Batum as an athletic, shot-making wing; Diaw as a frontcourt facilitator who can give opposing defenses fits when he's fit.

France will need Parker at his best along with plenty of energy and toughness from the likes of Turiaf and Seraphin up front to challenge the Americans in their Olympic opener on Sunday, especially without the services of Chicago Bulls big man Joakim Noah.

A big game by Batum—who just inked a new $46 million deal with the Portland Trail Blazers—would certainly help France's cause as well.