9.02.2006

Sending in NBA Champs/Team Is an OPTION

At this point, no more wake-up-call cliché as the US Redeem Team are 0-for-3 the last major basketball meets. They should have been awaken long time ago, as early as the Sydney 2000 Olympics scare. They are now the ReDoomed Team. Before they can even go to the China Olympics (Remember the 3 year commitment?), they need to do some qualifying games in Venezuela’s Americas Games. With all the hype and supposedly more focused US Ball preparation, they will be lucky to get by Argentina and get the consolation Bronze.

Why not let the NBA National Champions represent the NBA. I would think, Greece can't handle Miami Heat that easily. FIBA rules or not.

There is enough talent in a given NBA team. A team which has players who know their roles. A team with legit go to guy/s. A team with defensive players ready to lock-in players. A team that can play both offense and defense in sync. Basically, a ready T-E-A-M.

Basketball is a team sport, you can not just assemble all-star team (contrary to the perceived better handling of the selection, the USA still formed and all-star line-up having Melo, James and Wade carrying the NBA Marketing Torch, err, US Torch) and pit it against well-oiled European National teams. Having too many scorers in a team, makes the offense confusing at times. Too much deferring is going on.

The only problem in sending a full NBA team is, outside Miami and Detroit, when you pick out the International Player/s in a certain team, you'll and up with mediocre team.

Think Dallas without Dirk, Phoenix Suns without Nash, Spurs without Manu and Parker, Rockets without Yao and Memphis without Gasol.

Which leads me to this point, maybe its just the way. Borrowing a line from fellow basketball fan Jimmy Santos, it isn’t THE WAY IT USED TO BE. Since a lot major NBA stars are now foreign bred and 3 straight times, the US team got busted in FIBA games, maybe all should accept the fact that the US is no longer on top of the basketball world.

If the US Team can't handle Greece, can the American basketball aficionados handle the truth?

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