USA Basketball's First "Test"
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by Ea34
Wait until they play Brazil. They won’t steamroll Brazil like they did Venezuela, Canada and the Virgin Islands. Brazil’s going to give them a game.
That’s what we (myself included) said. As incredibly dominant as Team USA had been in disposing of its first three opponents, winning by an average margin of more than 52 points, we were hesitant to get too excited, lest we suffer yet another letdown courtesy of another group of the NBA ’s young, lavishly paid, one-on-one specialists. The United States’ early dominance at the America’s Tournament in Las Vegas has been largely attributed to inferior opposition. Sure, Kobe, LeBron & Co. have been playing hard, unselfish basketball, but they haven’t exactly been matched up against the world’s best.
Despite its #17 global ranking, largely due to a disappointing showing at the 2006 FIBA World Championships, Brazil was seen as one of two teams (Argentina being the other) that could hang with the U.S., if not beat them. Led by a pair of quality NBA players in Leandro Barbosa and Nene, as well as Tiago Splitter, the #28 (would have been much higher if his contract in Spain didn’t contain a huge buyout clause) overall pick in 2007 Draft, and Alex Garcia, currently playing the NBA’s D-League, the Brazilians were expected to pull back the curtain on Team USA’s Dream Team-like run and expose this team, as they have their predecessors, as a group of individuals that come apart when faced with any adversity. At the very least, Brazil was supposed to trade blows with the Americans, getting them battle-ready for the tournament’s elimination rounds. This was supposed to be a tough game.
Until they tipped off on Sunday night.
Once again, the US looked invincible, dishing out a 37 point drubbing to one of its “top competitors”. It’s as the though Team USA has decided to vent their collective frustration over the unflattering comparisons to its recent unsuccessful USA Basketball counterparts by demoralizing any team that’s put in front of them. Brazil was supposed to be different. Not the case. That the final margin of victory on Sunday night was only 37 points is more a function of how difficult it is to maintain a 50-point lead than any Brazilian comeback. (PLEASE- no one argue that because of the absence of Anderson Varejao, Brazil is playing short-handed. He could have made 36 points of difference and still not changed the game’s outcome!)
This team has arrived. Seeing in the swagger of the American players as they take the floor, only mildly interested in who’s on the other side, because they all look the same down by 50 points, is a very comforting sight to fans of USA Basketball. This team is capable of dominating any opposition, playing any style of basketball, on any given night. Sunday night was no exception; in fact it may have one of the greatest Team USA performances in history, given the pressure of facing its best competition thus far in the tournament, combined with having to validate its dominant three game run. The fact that Kobe & Co. played with such intensity and focus with nothing was on the line is a great indicator of what it will look like when they play more meaningful games.
Who carried Team USA on Sunday?
- Kobe Bryant, the best basketball player on the planet, put together the tournament’s best individual performance at both ends of the floor, scoring 20 points, in 20 minutes, on just nine shots (3-6 from behind the arc), and guarding the tournament’s leading scorer (27 ppg entering last night), Phoenix Suns’ super-sub, Leandro Barbosa, and absolutely neutralizing him. In 26 minutes on the floor, Barbosa could manage only 4 points, making just 1 of his seven field goal attempts, and 4 turnovers.
- In a combined 41 minutes, LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony were dominant on the wings, combining to make 16 of their 24 shots, each scoring 21 points, with Melo grabbing 10 rebounds and LeBron adding 5 assists and 2 steals.
- Like he has been throughout the America’s Tournament, Michael Redd was dialed in from behind the arc, making four of his seven 3-point attempts (6-10 overall from the field), scoring 16 points.
It would be easy to overreact to this performance and begin showering this team with hyperbole, except for one thing. How do you exaggerate near perfection? Given Team USA’s play this week, it’s tough to come up with much that could be considered hyperbole.
