Will Team USA Spawn the NBA's Next Superstar Pairing?
Being a member of Team USA is a big deal in its own right, but sometimes, it's actually the beginning of something even bigger.
Players representing the U.S. in the Olympics and FIBA World Cup have shown a remarkable knack for reuniting in the NBA, and this year's FIBA World Cup squad could provide the foundation for the next great superstar merger.
The 2008 Beijing Olympics preceded the construction of the Miami Heat's now-dismantled dynasty, giving LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh a chance to get familiar and talk about the future. Two years later, they came together to make four straight NBA Finals appearances.
Lest we mistake that instance for a fluke, consider that it just happened again—this time resulting in another new title contender as James and Kevin Love have joined forces in Cleveland.
"LeBron, I really got to know at the London Olympics," Love told The Associated Press (via Yahoo Sports). "That's where the relationship was really forged."
Some of the league's biggest names aren't in Spain for the World Cup, but there are still some intriguing possibilities involving young NBA stars. As we watch Team USA pursue gold, we might also be witnessing the next great set of NBA teammates—with the caveat, of course, that they're not actually teammates just yet.
Extended Splash Family
DeMarcus Cousins might be interested in joining the Golden State Warriors' Splash Brothers, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. But his credentials are lacking:
Jumper issues aside, there are a couple of other roadblocks to Cousins teaming up with his sharpshooting FIBA teammates in Golden State. For starters, the Warriors aren't exactly flush with cap room; they're projected to be over the salary cap in each of the next two seasons. Even if the cap and luxury-tax ceilings were to rise, the Dubs would have nowhere near the room to accommodate Cousins' big number (he signed a four-year, $65.6 million deal just one year ago) any time soon.
Per Sam Amick of USA Today, Team USA head coach Mike Krzyzewski said, "We have believed in DeMarcus right from training camp."
That belief has been well placed, and the Sacramento Kings won't be in any hurry to move a player who has used this FIBA tourney to confirm he's growing up.
With a deal that pays him handsomely through the 2017-18 season, a trade is the only way for Golden State to haul in a Splash Cousin anytime soon. The Warriors have assets, but Thompson seems to be the one everyone wants, and the Dubs proved in their unsuccessful negotiations for Love this past summer that they weren't interested in dealing him.
If the Warriors were to shed David Lee and Andrew Bogut, perhaps a Cousins deal would be possible. But calling this one far-fetched is still a massive undersell.
Still, it's fun to dream about what might be. Cousins would draw doubles, run rampant on the glass and generally wreak havoc inside as defenses scrambled to cover Golden State's shooters on the perimeter.
Chi-Town Double
Team USA might also lay the groundwork for a hometown reunion, as Anthony Davis could someday seek to join teammate Derrick Rose in the Windy City.
Chicago fans got a taste of what such a marriage might feel like when Team USA thumped Brazil in an Aug. 16 exhibition at the United Center. The assembled attendees were most excited to see Rose take part in a real basketball game for the first time in months, but there was a buzz about Davis as well.
Nothing's bigger than basketball in Chicago, and adding the hometown kid, regarded now as the NBA's next great superstar, would send a shockwave through the entire Midwest.
As with Cousins and Golden State, though, figuring out how to get AD to Chicago is tricky. Still on his rookie deal, Davis figures to follow the overwhelming trend by signing his first extension with his current team when he's eligible to do so in 2016. Young stars, almost without exception, have preferred to cash in on the extra year and inflated salary available for sticking with their original squad.
Kyrie Irving, Paul George and John Wall did it.
Unless something drastic happens, Davis figures to do it, too.
Rose is a question mark, himself. The thing about superstars coming together to form superteams is that both players have to technically be superstars. From what we've seen in the World Cup to this point, it's hard to say Rose still carries that label. If his game doesn't return to form over the next couple of years, the Chicago Bulls' main concern will be finding one superstar—forget about two.
Then again, if Rose finds his MVP stride by the time Davis has a chance to leave New Orleans in two years, the timing could be perfect. Joakim Noah's deal expires in 2016, and the Bulls will head into the ensuing summer with just $46 million committed to the following season's salaries. That might be enough (with the likely cap escalation) to max out Davis on the off-chance the allure of a hometown return proves enticing enough to draw him away from the Bayou.
"So Chicago must wait a few years to see if Davis would ever seriously consider coming home. But at 21, it's not as if Davis is hitting the peak of his career. He's just getting started—and only getting better. While it's still several years too early to consider him as a possibility for the Bulls, or any other team, the reality of the collective bargaining agreement means front offices must consider all potential scenarios years into the future.
"
Speaking of which, of all potential scenarios we've seen when it comes to superteam construction, one thing we haven't yet witnessed is the pairing of a past MVP and one who could very well win a few of his own in the near future.
Rose and Davis could produce such a tandem if they decide to team up in Chicago.
Expect the Unexpected
It's fun to imagine the members of Team USA building relationships that give rise to new superpowers in the NBA.
If it seems like these potential pairings are too good too be true, consider how unlikely the union of James, Wade and Bosh would have seemed back in 2008. And try to grasp how unthinkable a James-Love team-up in Cleveland would have felt back in 2012.
Until both of those things actually happened.
If the past is any indication, the most likely superstar combos are the ones we haven't even thought of yet. There are big-time unifications coming, and if this year's FIBA World Cup spawns a few that shift the balance of NBA power, we shouldn't be surprised.
Unless otherwise noted, all salary figures courtesy of Spotrac.com.
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