2012 Olympic Team

[sagegrouse]

Howard will undergo surgery to repair a herniated disk and be lost for the rest of the season plus the summer Olympics.

sagegrouse

[superdave]

This strengthens the position of Tyson Chandler, who may be NBA DPOY this season. I think Howard's absence and Lamarcus Aldridge's hip surgery also means we need to add another big to the roster.

Here's the guys from the 20-man roster who will not be around this summer in all likelihood-

Dwight Howard
Lamarcus Aldrudge
Chauncy Billups
Lamar Odom


Here's the # of missed games this season for some other guys on the roster -

Dwyane Wade 13
Derrick Rose 26
Kobe 7
Eric Gordon 55

The big men will probably be Chandler, Bosh, Love and Griffin with Carmelo and Durant playing the 4 as necessary. They will probably need to add another big man or two for tryout and practice purposes though, so they do not get caught flat-footed in the event of another injury. Ideally the big man would be able to protect the rim and be versatile enough to guard away from the basket too, since international bigs tend to be skilled.

Greg Monroe (averaging 15.6 and 9.5) is the best example of a versatile big. Joakim Noah seems to replicate a lot of what Chandler does already. Andrew Bynum is turning into a stud at 18.9 and 12.1, but he's immature to the 3rd degree. JaVale McGee had a good tryout two summers ago, but he's the definition of knucklehead. Roy Hibbert might be too soft.

My guess is one or two additional bigs come to tryouts, but do not make the team. If Coach K and Colangelo are truly worried about the big man situation with Howard and Aldridge gone, bringing in a veteran like Garnett or Duncan could also be a solid move.

[sagegrouse]

Joakim Noah seems to replicate a lot of what Chandler does already. .

C'est vrai, malheureusement, que Joakim Noah, le fils de Yannick Noah, soit francais.

sage

[flyingdutchdevil]

Howard may seem like an awful human being, but he is a phenomenal center and defender (at least the best that the US has). This seems that Chandler will definitely be on the team. I'd like to see Bynum as well, who is extremely talented and only half a notch below Howard. I really don't like the idea of Griffin on the team as he doesn't bring much to the table except for the opportunity for another Vinsanity "tea bag" incident.

[Dev11]

C'est vrai, malheureusement, que Joakim Noah, le fils de Yannick Noah, soit francais.

sage

According to Wikipedia, he was born in New York City, so no problem. (I will not stoop to your use of a language that wins no wars when we are discussing the Olympics)

[Dukehky]

K is not going to keep Lamar Odom after what he just pulled this season. I also think that Bynum should probably get a shot here along with Chandler. No body has a front line that can bang with Bynum if you have a 7 minute stretch in every game when he gets the ball. Other than that I want this squad run and gun, but a short stretch of the game where you let the big boy bang can only be a good thing.

[phaedrus]

C'est vrai, malheureusement, que Joakim Noah, le fils de Yannick Noah, soit francais.

sage

Mais il n'est pas un citoyen Americain aussi? A-t-il deja joue pour la france?

[BlueDevilBaby]

C'est vrai, malheureusement, que Joakim Noah, le fils de Yannick Noah, soit francais.

sage

Bien dit, sagegrouse!

[sagegrouse]

According to Wikipedia, he was born in New York City, so no problem. (I will not stoop to your use of a language that wins no wars when we are discussing the Olympics)

Mais il n'est pas un citoyen Americain aussi? A-t-il deja joue pour la france?

Ici sont les jouers pour l'equipe national de France (2011):

#	Name	Ht.	Club
4	Noah, Joakim	2.11 m (6 ft 11 in)	Chicago Bulls
5	Batum, Nicolas	2.03 m (6 ft 8 in)	Portland Trail Blazers
6	Seraphin, Kevin	2.06 m (6 ft 9 in)	Washington Wizards
7	Albicy, Andrew	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)	Paris-Levallois Basket
8	Lombahe-Kahudi, Charles	1.99 m (6 ft 6 in)	Le Mans Sarthe Basket
9	Parker, Tony	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)	San Antonio Spurs
10	Traore, Ali	2.05 m (6 ft 9 in)	BC Lokomotiv–Kuban Krasnodar
11	Piétrus, Florent	2.02 m (6 ft 8 in)	Valencia BC
12	De Colo, Nando	1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)	Valencia BC
13	Diaw, Boris (C)	2.03 m (6 ft 8 in)	San Antonio Spurs
14	Tchicamboud, Steed	1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)	ÉS Chalon-sur-Saône
15	Gelabale, Mickaël	2.00 m (6 ft 7 in)	ASVEL Basket

Don't think we will see Messrs. Noah, Batum, Seraphin, Parker or Diaw in the stars and stripes.

sagegrouse

[superdave]

K is not going to keep Lamar Odom after what he just pulled this season. I also think that Bynum should probably get a shot here along with Chandler. No body has a front line that can bang with Bynum if you have a 7 minute stretch in every game when he gets the ball. Other than that I want this squad run and gun, but a short stretch of the game where you let the big boy bang can only be a good thing.

Yeah, but Bynum is more of a headcase than Odom.
Remember how he exited the playoffs last season?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLxGm3El1cI

Remember him sulking this season and undermining his coach? We cannot have someone with little character representing the United States.

[burnspbesq]

C'est vrai, malheureusement, que Joakim Noah, le fils de Yannick Noah, soit francais.

sage

Quel dommage.

[FerryFor50]

Quel dommage.

quel fromage!

[burnspbesq]

Allez a l'enfer, Carolina!

[Indoor66]

According to Wikipedia, he was born in New York City, so no problem. (I will not stoop to your use of a language that wins no wars when we are discussing the Olympics)

It's OK. All you have to do is speak in reverse.

[MCFinARL]

C'est vrai, malheureusement, que Joakim Noah, le fils de Yannick Noah, soit francais.

sage

Wow, is that subjunctive? Zut alors!

[Dev11]

http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/s...asketball-team

Bynum's not interested in the stars and stripes with his knee problems. The US front court is looking less formidable this week.

[Greg_Newton]

http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/s...asketball-team

Bynum's not interested in the stars and stripes with his knee problems. The US front court is looking less formidable this week.

K's going to miss out on all the top big men and have convince a 2004 veteran like Tim Duncan to play again.

[PumpkinFunk]

K's going to miss out on all the top big men and have convince a 2004 veteran like Tim Duncan to play again.

I feel like Duncan or Garnett (both good choices) are gonna say no because of age, which leaves us with: Roy Hibbert, Greg Monroe, and... Anthony Davis as the best American big men? Is there really any other somewhat-competent center in the League? (If JaVale McGee somehow makes the team, I will actually start crying) I dunno, but I like the chances of Anthony Davis at least getting a call from Coach K and Team USA. I'm sure he's watching a ton of NBA tape now to figure out who to pick to take the big man/center role that Dwight's surgery has opened up. With a potential game against Spain, we need a solid big man, and we just don't quite have one.

[Greg_Newton]

I feel like Duncan or Garnett (both good choices) are gonna say no because of age, which leaves us with: Roy Hibbert, Greg Monroe, and... Anthony Davis as the best American big men? Is there really any other somewhat-competent center in the League? (If JaVale McGee somehow makes the team, I will actually start crying) I dunno, but I like the chances of Anthony Davis at least getting a call from Coach K and Team USA. I'm sure he's watching a ton of NBA tape now to figure out who to pick to take the big man/center role that Dwight's surgery has opened up. With a potential game against Spain, we need a solid big man, and we just don't quite have one.

I was joking, but yeah, Aldridge's surgery doesn't help either.

I'd guess we're looking at Love, Chandler and Bosh as locks, with Griffin as a possibility. Don't really need to worry about the second big spot with Durant and LBJ on the roster...

[DukeFanSince1990]

quel fromage!

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