Olympics 2012: Medal Odds for Argentina and Lithuania Men's Basketball Teams

Argentina and Lithuania enter the 2012 Olympics with realistic medal hopes in men's basketball, and they do so after having battled in the bronze medal match, which Argentina won, in the 2008 Beijing Games.

They will put those hopes on the line in their opening game as they battle each other in what should be the most compelling matchup on the first day of men's basketball play. 

These two are locked in Group A with Team U.S.A, which leaves little room for error for either of these squads. So it is extremely unlikely that they will both medal, but the chances of one of them walking away with some hardware is pretty good. 

Here is a look at both teams' medal chances, with the odds provided by oddsshark.com. 

Argentina 

Odds of Winning Gold: 28/1

Argentina is led by the ever-crafty and always-dangerous Manu Ginobili. On just his skills alone—as a Manu hot streak is good enough to carry any team to victory—Argentina has a chance to medal, but he most definitely is not the lone weapon at the team's disposal. 

Ginobili has Carlos Delfino to run with in the backcourt, with Luis Scola and Andres Nocioni providing some length up front. That is a solid core of players, and one that certainly is good enough to bring home a medal. 

However, Argentina is hurting for depth. In a recent contest with Team U.S.A.—which Argentina lost by just six points—only six Argentine players played more than 11 minutes, and just three had more than eight points.

This is going to be a problem for Argentina in any close game. 

Prediction: Bronze

Lithuania 

Odds of Winning Gold: 33/1

Lithuania does not carry the same kind of name power as Argentina, and this squad looks quite a bit different than the one seen in Beijing.

But it is deep and well-coached.  

Linas Kleiza is the name that should be most recognizable to NBA fans, and Lithuania boasts two other players with NBA experience, Darius Songaila and point guard Sarunas Jasikevicius—but that is the extent of it. 

This team does not need big names, though. They play as a team and thrive as a team. If the Lithuanians are going to win a medal, they will have to run an opponent like Argentina into the ground, and I don't see that happening.

Lithuania will perform well, but they will again narrowly miss out on a medal. 

Prediction: fourth place