![]() Despite clearly being the more talented team, the U.S. The original Dream Team beat their opponents by an average score of 44 points. The 19 point differential was the biggest loss in Olympic history for the United States. The Puerto Rico team, led by Carlos Arroyo, didn’t just beat the United States. Then, it ended up being the worst loss in the history of U.S. It seemed like an easy opener to let the United States ease into the tournament. ![]() They opened the tournament with a game against Puerto Rico, which is technically part of the United States. How couldn’t they be? They were invincible. Four years later, a team being led by James, Anthony, and Wade would feel impressive, but they weren’t there year in 2004.ĭespite all this, the United States were still the favorites. Other than Tim Duncan, there weren’t any generational players in their primes on this team. team being so saturated with options they could leave Thomas at home were over. Good players, sure, even very good players. Beyond that, team had players such as Shawn Marion, Stephon Marbury, Lamar Odom, Carlos Boozer, and Richard Jefferson. While a player like Allen Iverson is a notable player, he didn’t necessarily fit into what is needed from an Olympic team. To be fair, the team’s hands were tied a bit, as some players wouldn’t agree to participate. This is a decision that, at the time, felt a bit odd, and, in retrospect, feels like a real mistake. Emeka Okafor was in the Christian Laettner role, a college player being asked to play alongside NBA players. A 19-year-old LeBron James was on the team, as were Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade. There was a lot of turnover on this roster, with a lot of young players making their Olympic debuts. There was no reason to believe anything but another gold was coming America’s way. American NBA players were undefeated at the Olympics. Ever since NBA players had begun playing in the Olympics, the team had not only won three golds, but had not lost a single game. The one who didn’t win gold.īy the time of the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece, the birthplace of the Olympics, it was essentially considered a given that the United States would win gold in men’s basketball. (Although, when you look at that team’s roster, and see names such as Vin Baker and Shareef Abdul-Rahim, it sort of presages what was to come.) No, this is the tale of the 2004 team. Hell, it’s not even about the 2000 team, best remembered for Vince Carter’s dunk over Frederic Weis. It’s not even about the 1996 United States men’s basketball team, which also cruised to a title and included five dream team members who came back for a second go. ![]() This story isn’t about the Dream Team, though. They dominated their opposition and cruised to the gold even though Isaiah Thomas was kept off the team due to a general disdain for him, led by Michael Jordan. It was perhaps the best basketball team ever put together. The story of the Dream Team does not need to be rehashed here. This allowed the United States, which had finished third in 1988, to try and recruit some NBA players, the best players in the world, to come represent their country and go for gold. In 1992, professional basketball players were allowed to participate in the Summer Olympics for the first time.
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