How the 1992 Dream Team could have won gold at the 2021 Olympics
How the 1992 Dream Team could have won gold at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Following the inclusion of professional basketball players in 1992, team USA has won six out of seven gold medals. The only failure was at the 2004 Olympics when they finished third, losing to Argentina in the semi-finals in Athens.
There are concerns these Olympics could be a repeat of the 2004 Games. The Americans have struggled in their preparations for Tokyo, suffering shock warm-up defeats by Nigeria and Australia, followed by back-to-back wins over Argentina and Spain.
The 1992 “Dream Team”, arguably the best basketball team ever, set high standards for the next generations, and the most recent ones had a hard time keeping to it. The “Dream Team” never even came close to losing a game. They went 20-0 in the preparation period and the Olympics.
Things have changed since.
At the 2018 FIBA World Cup, Team USA finished in 7th place, losing to France in the quarter-finals and later to Serbia in the match for 5th place.
This years’ roster that participates in the Olympics seems much better with Kevin Durant and Damian Lillard leading the way but it is still miles away from the dominance of the 1992 team.
This years’ roster is incomparable to the original “Dream Team”. The 1992 team was packed with Hall of Famers who went all the way to the gold medal like it was a walk in the park. Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and co. were winning their games with an average margin of 43.8 points.
Every player in the league back in the day was honored to play at the Olympics which is not the case nowadays. Prior to the Olympics LeBron James said that he thinks he is going to play for the Tune Squad, choosing to promote the Space Jam movie this summer instead of playing for team USA. Decisions like this were unthinkable back in the day.
Anthony Davis has not recovered from a groin injury that kept him to a very limited role in the Lakers’ series loss to Phoenix Suns.
Two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry, who has yet to win an Olympic gold medal, has also opted out.
It seems the biggest names are now prioritizing rest and recovery in order to prepare for another run at the NBA championship.
Unfortunately for the USA supporters, this years’ roster is not even close to the “Dream Team” which was confirmed with the loss to France in the tournament opener. The original “Dream Team” was full of leaders. On any given day, any player on the roster could dominate. Whether that was Magic or John Stockton at the point guards position, Jordan or Clyde Drexler at the two, Scottie Pippen or Larry Bird on the wing, or Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, David Robinson, or Patrick Ewing in the paint.
Right now it seems like no player is fully willing to take full responsibility for the team’s success. All the players on the roster, except Keldon Johnson and JaVale McGee are All-Star players, and Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, McGee, and most recently Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday are NBA champions. Gregg Popovich is the head coach. This team has the quality to win the tournament but the way they started and even more important, the way they are playing, seems like it is going to be a long ride.
If the original “Dream Team” played in Tokyo, they would easily win the gold medal and will probably defeat this years’ team with at least 25 points differential. Only Kevin Durant is on the level of the players that played in Barcelona. Will that be enough for another gold, we are about to see very soon.
