Team USA Olympic men’s basketball stars (from L to R) DeAndre Jordan, Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant.
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The U.S. attacked the rim in the second half. If that victor happens to be Team USA, they must be happy that they’re only dealing with one of their fiercest enemies!
This semifinal game is earlier than these two squads are accustomed to playing one another, but there’s still a lot on the line. Spain awaits on Friday, and there’s a possible rematch with Australia for the gold medal final.
Turns out playing hard isn’t that hard after all.
“Tonight is the Paul George we see in the NBA”, Collins said. “They gotta have players that if they don’t get a shot, they’re not just gonna stand around and mope”.
Without it, these guys could lose – Friday, or Sunday. “I thought our defense was OK, but we couldn’t hit a shot early”.
How they got here: The US survives as the only team without a loss in the preliminary round, going 5-0, but looked far from dominant in their last three victories (decided by an average of 5.3 points).
It might just be, though, that this team was badly missing some leaders. That group was the foundation of the team that won the gold medal in the FIBA World Championships in Indianapolis in 2002 and the gold medal in the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece. James made a decision to sit this one out, understandable after leading Cleveland to an emotionally draining National Basketball Association title.
“An awesome journey. I’ve been so lucky to have the opportunity to play four times in this type of event”. “I did not retire from Team USA”. When I was on the perimeter I tried to beat my man. It is a very good and experienced team with a roster full of current and former National Basketball Association players.
United States of America vs. Spain has been the final for the past two Olympics with the Americans coming out on top both times.
Bojan Bogdanovic led Croatia with 28 points, while Bogdan Bogdanovic finished with 18 points for Serbia in the win.
Much of the preparation will be on Krzyzewski and his staff, and the Duke coach did alter his starting lineup against Argentina.
Fear of embarrassment may have been a motivating factor.
Warriors stars Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant combined for 36 points Friday to lead the USA men’s basketball squad to a 82-76 semifinal win over Spain.
Spanish coach Sergio Scariolo said Thursday that Gasol was questionable with a sore thigh muscle suffered three games ago, but it would be a shock not to see him patrolling the paint in such a big game. Even with inconsistent effort on the defensive end and players who look out of place in their first global appearance, Mike Krzyzewski’s team has more talent and depth.
In the end, though, desire usually trumps talent.
After Team USA recalibrated its program and took the embarrassment of a bronze medal in the 2004 Olympics to heart, the US hit its stride of re-configuring its mindset and approach at the right time. We got to come in ready.
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The answer will likely determine what color medal this team goes home with.
