Comparing Every Current Team USA Player to His Dream Team Counterpart

The 2012 United States Men's Olympic Basketball Team is currently undefeated in this year's Olympic games, displaying dominance along the way to a 5-0 record in group play.

The 1992 Dream Team of course went on to win the gold medal, finishing 8-0 in Olympic play.

While a debate has sparked over which team would win a head-to-head matchup, the purpose of this article will be to compare players on the two teams instead of the teams themselves.

With both rosters full of some of the NBA's best talent, who on the 2012 team best compares to his 1992 counterpart?

Let's take a look.

Anthony Davis, PF: Christian Laettner, PF

Skills Brought to Team: Youth, Insurance, Size

Davis 2012 Stats Per Game: 6.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 0.75 blocks

Laettner 1992 Stats Per Game: 4.8 points, 2.5 rebounds, 0.4 blocks

The comparisons between Anthony Davis and Christian Laettner are bountiful.

Like Laettner, Davis is the only member of his team with no professional experience.  Laettner was about to enter the NBA after an outstanding college career at Duke, one in which he won the 1991 NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player Award.

Davis won the same award for the Kentucky Wildcats last season, and is scheduled to play his first season for the New Orleans Hornets this fall.

As expected, playing time has been sporadic for both, being the youngest members of their respective teams.

Russell Westbrook, PG: Clyde Drexler, SG

Skills Brought to Team: Athleticism, Scoring

Westbrook 2012 Stats Per Game: 10.4 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists

Drexler 1992 Stats Per Game: 10.5 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.4 assists

Every team needs an attacker off the bench, which is precisely the role of Russell Westbrook and was Clyde Drexler's with their respective Olympic teams.

Displaying amazing athleticism, both provided instant offense whenever they can into the game, also chipping in some rebounds and assists here and there.

Like Westbrook, Drexler had a bad habit of taking questionable shots as he connected on only six of 21 three-pointers in 1992, good for 28.6 percent.

Tyson Chandler, C: Patrick Ewing, C

Skills Brought to Team: Size, Rebounding, Defense 

Chandler 2012 Stats Per Game: 4.0 points, 5.2 rebounds, 0.8 blocks

Ewing 1992 Stats Per Game: 9.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.1 blocks

Chandler is really the only true center on this year's USA team, so he could compare naturally to Ewing or David Robinson based on position alone.

Looking at the numbers and style of play, however, and it appears Ewing makes for the better comparison.

For one, Ewing's rebounding and shot-blocking numbers are more similar to Chandler's than Robinson's.  The shooting numbers stack up more favorably as well, as Ewing shot 62.3 percent from the field compared to Chandler's 66.7 percent.

Andre Iguodala, SG: Larry Bird, SF

Skills Brought to Team: Shooting, Versatility

Iguodala 2012 Stats Per Game: 5.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists

Bird 1992 Stats Per Game: 8.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists

At that point in his NBA career, Larry Bird was past his prime but still found ways to contribute to the Dream Team.

Given the versatility to be able to shoot threes, grab rebounds and defend multiple positions, Iguodala seems to compare favorably.

From the outside Bird was the much better shooter, although Iguodala has converted 12 of his 17 shot attempts thus far for Team USA, good for 70.6 percent.

Deron Williams, PG: John Stockton, PG

Skills Brought to Team: Passing, Point Guard Insurance

Williams 2012 Olympic Stats: .417 FG%, 8.4 ppg, 5.6 apg

Stockton 1992 Olympic Stats: .500 FG%, 2.8 ppg, 2.2 apg 

Williams is the first point guard off the bench for Team USA, as was Stockton in 1992. 

While neither started a game in either Olympics, both made significant contributions to their respective teams.

Williams is second on the 2012 squad with 28 total assists and ranks fourth on the team in minutes played per game.

Stockton's usage wasn't quite as great, but he did shoot a solid 50 percent from the floor off the bench backing up starting point guard Magic Johnson.

For not accustomed to being reserves, both Williams and Stockton played and excelled in their roles for Team USA.

Kevin Love, PF: David Robinson, C

Skills Brought to Team: Size, Rebounding, Scoring

Love 2012 Stats Per Game: 13.0 points, 6.4 rebounds, .667 FG%

Robinson 1992 Stats Per Game: 9.0 points, 4.1 rebounds, .574 FG%

Although not a true center, Love has found himself playing the position quite a bit due to the 2012 team's lack of size.

Robinson is also regarded as center No. 2 on the Dream Team, splitting duties with Patrick Ewing.

Both Love and Robinson bring rebounding and a good amount of scoring to the position, with Love's 13 points per game good enough for third behind Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony.

Another thing Love and Robinson have in common is the lack of shot-blocking these big men have produced. 

In the five games the 2012 team has played in, Love has a grand total of one blocked shot.  Robinson wasn't much better in '92, swatting away just two shots in eight games.

James Harden, SG: Chris Mullin, SF

Skills Brought to Team: Outside Shooting, Depth

Harden 2012 Stats Per Game: 6.4 points, 1.0 rebound, 1.0 assist

Mullin 1992 Stats Per Game: 12.9 points, 1.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists

Harden and Mullin were both brought onto the Olympic teams for one main reason: shooting.

While Harden is still struggling to find his shot in limited minutes, Mullin all but mastered his stroke with the Dream Team.

Shooting 61.9 percent from the field and 53.8 percent from behind the three-point line, Mullin played either wing position while putting up nearly 13 points a game.

Harden has yet to discover his stroke, connecting on only four of his 15 three-point attempts thus far for a percentage of 26.7.

Both are extremely skilled from beyond the arc and provided their respective teams with an additional threat from deep.

Chris Paul, PG: Magic Johnson, PG

Skills Brought to Team: Passing, Three-point Shooting, Defense

Paul 2012 Stats Per Game: 7.6 points, 3.0 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 2.2 steals

Johnson 1992 Stats Per Game: 8.0 points, 2.3 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 1.3 steals

In addition to owning nearly identical statlines, Paul and Magic both represent the head of the snake for their teams.

Paul and Magic both start/started at point guard for Team USA, with Paul leading his team in assists and Magic finishing second behind Scottie Pippen.

Paul, with his ability to play the passing lane and rack up steals, and Magic, with his size and versatility to guard multiple positions, set the tone on the defensive end for their teams.

Both play/played crucial roles for the USA, leading their respective squads to undefeated records.

Kevin Durant, SF: Charles Barkley, PF

Skills Brought to Team: Scoring, Rebounding

Durant 2012 Stats Per Game: 18.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists

Barkley 1992 Stats Per Game: 18.0 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists

While Durant and Barkley have nowhere near a physical resemblance, their role on each's Olympic squads are very similar.

Like Barkley in '92, Durant is leading his team in scoring at over 18 points per game.  The production doesn't end there, however, as both are near the team lead in rebounding despite being far from the biggest players on the squad.

Surprisingly, Barkley led the Dream Team in three-point shooting percentage at 87.5 percent, connecting on seven of his eight attempts.

Durant also leads the 2012 version, connecting on 20-33 attempts for a percentage of 60.6.

Carmelo Anthony, SF: Karl Malone, PF

Skills Brought to Team: Scoring, Rebounding

Anthony 2012 Stats Per Game: 17.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, .588 FG%

Malone 1992 Stats Per Game: 13.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, .645 FG%

While Anthony spends most of his time playing small forward for the New York Knicks, he often finds himself moving down a spot to power forward to fill the U.S.'s void in size.

Due to this position switch and stats, Melo and the Mailman appear to have a lot in common.

Both teams relied on these two stars mainly for one thing: scoring.

Anthony currently ranks second on Team USA in scoring behind Kevin Durant.

Malone was third among all members of the Dream Team, coming in just behind Charles Barkley and Michael Jordan.

The rebound numbers are also similar, as is the high field goal percentage.  While Malone was by no means a three-point threat, he could attack the basket which Anthony is often known to do today.

LeBron James, SF: Scottie Pippen, SF

Skills Brought to Team: Versatility, Defense, Passing, Scoring

James 2012 Stats Per Game: 11.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists

Pippen 1992 Stats Per Game: 9.0 points, 2.1 rebounds, 5.9 assists

James could arguably compare to any member of the Dream Team, as his versatility and skill set on the court could nearly match up with any player at any position.

The same could be said about Pippen, who actually lead the '92 team in assists even with Magic Johnson and John Stockton on the roster.

While James's assist numbers aren't quite as high as Pippen's, James does have the slight advantage in scoring and rebounds thus far.

Both are listed as small forwards, but due to their size and athleticism they could play and defend multiple positions, a trait that Mike Krzyzewski loves to have in his players.

Kobe Bryant, SG: Michael Jordan, SG

Skills Brought to Team: Scoring, Leadership, Killer Instinct

Bryant 2012 Stats Per Game: 8.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists

Jordan 1992 Stats Per Game: 14.9 points, 2.4 rebounds, 4.8 assists

The Kobe-Jordan comparison is inevitable, given that Bryant is the closest thing the NBA has seen since Jordan's retirement.

Interestingly enough, neither Bryant nor Jordan is/was the leading scorer on the Olympic team, despite being more than capable of being it.

Bryant is a tad older now than Jordan was in '92, and at 33 he's begun to give way to younger players like Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant when it comes to scoring.

If it came down to a last-second shot, however, it's likely the ball would be in the Black Mamba's hands, as he's shown the clutch factor over and over again throughout his career.

The same can be said about Jordan.  While he wasn't the leading scorer on the Dream Team, he didn't need to be for it to win.  If a game had come down to one final shot, one can bet it would be Jordan, much like Bryant now, who would have the ball when the game mattered most.

The killer instinct to be able to put teams away is something every team needs, and Jordan and Bryant are two of the best of all time.