U.S.A. vs. Germany -- The Little Things

Dwyane Wade may be a devout Christian, but he loves to gamble -- Wade hasn't been playing defense this whole tournament. Yeah he has been getting steals all over the place, but his steals are all off anticipation passes, a.k.a. gambling. If the player handling the ball fakes the pass and Wade bites, he runs way too fast (see: nickname, the flash) and has to recover. This translates to, even with his speed, a shot being fired. But hey, he's tripled up and is at a hot table, so why stop?

This will work for the rest of the tournament, and maybe for the Wade replacement, if he's good enough, in 2012. But as soon as we lose our athleticism (which, I'm convinced, is all we have as an advantage), this gambling will screw us over. But once again, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.


Chris Kaman/Clipper fans should be worried -- I am a diehard Clipper fan, and I have the utmost faith in Chris Kaman. I am not worried at all about his poor offensive showing today. He was double teamed, getting the ball at the wrong places, and missed stupid layups that he can work on over the rest of the offseason. Plus, he had some decent moves against Dwight Howard, who is apparently pretty good, so I've heard.

Did you see him interact with the other German players? He seemed pissed off a lot, was barking orders (not in the positive sense), and the general behavior made it seem as if he wasnt getting along with a lot of them. Yeah, compared to the level he is used to playing at, I can see him being frustrated. But, you can also put this at the level of him not understanding how to take a leadership role, him not being able to interact with a bunch of new teammates he doesn't know. Wait, this sounds familiar . . . doesn't he have tons of new teammates on the Clippers now? Isn't he supposed to step up leadership a little, seeing as hes supposed to be one of the top centers in the West (list em, you'll see what I mean)? I can see him having problems this year, him being unhappy, and tons of other things. It will be something to follow, if you're a Clipper fan . . .

Michael Redd isn't 'bang-banging'-- What happened to our sharp shooter? Even I would have hit one of those threes he took, some were wide open. His playing time is going to start dropping steadily, as Tayshaun takes his place (as noted by someone on ESPN, I forget who)

The U.S. can be beat (here's the secret formula) --Run a play (as also noted by ESPN, but something I believed as well). Thats it. Run a set play. How many plays have you seen perfectly executed by opposing teams? How many get the chance to even set up a play? If a team gets into a groove and sets up plays consistently, we may just have a match. Then again, that feat itself is looking nigh impossible at this point.

Is this the last best chance we have to win it? -- Players that I am guessing will not renew their Olympic 3-year contracts: Kobe, J-Kidd, LeBron, Wade, Melo, Dwight Howard. Now I am taking nothing away from the remaining talent, which includes two phenomenal point guards who will step up their game to ridiculous new levels by 2012, but let me re-list and rephrase the players you will potentially/probably lose: Defensive Stopper, Veteran Presence, Leader/Unguardable, Intangibles Energy, Commitment and Shooter, Beast and Beast.

Thats a lot to replace, and I don't see the incoming class having anywhere near that kind of talent and leadership enough to match it. Couple that with the ever improving FIBA players plus the potential expansion of the NBA bringing about better players overseas? We're done after this olympics, and it'll be evident when you see the players who sign the 3 year commitment contracts. They'll be good, but not great. It will take great to win after these olympics are over.