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  1. #81
    Quote Originally Posted by JasonEvans View Post
    In recent days the following guys have confirmed they will participate for Team USA:

    Jayson Tatum
    Damion Lillard
    Draymond Green
    Bradley Beal
    Devin Booker (once the Suns are done in the playoffs)

    And then this afternoon came word that Kevin Durant will also play for Team USA.

    Looking like we are getting most of the best players to commit. Should be fun!

    -Jason "where is Zion? He should be one of the first guys named" Evans
    Durant committing is huge. That gives 2 players that are 1st team all NBA caliber in Dame & Durant, and possibly the best player in the world right now in Durant.

    I’ve always focused on that level (who are the 1st/2nd team All-NBA level guys) as a barometer for whether the team could be head and shoulders above the rest. My sense was that the team needed at least 3 players of that caliber to compete at the level we are used to (head and shoulders favorite). As reference: in 2016 you had Durant, Olympics Melo, & George, as 1st Team caliber guys (although Melo was on the other side of his peak), plus Kyrie & Cousins who have both made 2nd team all-nba and peak Klay. DeAndre Jordan also made 1st team All-NBA that year. That’s 3-4 guys at the 1st team All-NBA depending on whether you count Melo plus Kyrie coming off “the shot” and Cousins and Klay playing some of their best ball. That was a potent core and you had Durant as the best or 2nd best player in the world.

    A core of Dame, Durant plus Tatum, Beal and Booker who are all high-level all-stars (Booker’s snub this year looks worse and worse every game he plays in the playoffs) and you’ve got a really talented & versatile core. All that’s missing now are a few big men…and maybe one more big commit like Paul George, Kyrie, Harden or Curry…

  2. #82
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Mount Kisco, NY
    Quote Originally Posted by SilkyJ View Post
    A core of Dame, Durant plus Tatum, Beal and Booker who are all high-level all-stars (Booker’s snub this year looks worse and worse every game he plays in the playoffs) and you’ve got a really talented & versatile core. All that’s missing now are a few big men…and maybe one more big commit like Paul George, Kyrie, Harden or Curry…
    Based on the guys in the pool, as far as bigs are concerned, I think Bam is a no brainer, assuming he's not angry about being passed over for Mason for the World Cup in 2019. Myles Turner has the FIBA experience from 2019 and I think he's a good FIBA big man, he increased his 3PA to over 4 per game this year and was at around 34%. I happen to be a big fan of Jarrett Allen so would not mind seeing him as a big. Based on the role he has accepted with the Nets, Blake Griffin would also be an interesting choice

    As for additional marquee commits, that's a good question. I think Butler would be great.

    The real Dream Team was just announced:
    https://www.usab.com/news-events/new...-unveiled.aspx

  3. #83
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Hot'Lanta... home of the Falcons!
    Quote Originally Posted by Billy Dat View Post
    The real Dream Team was just announced:
    https://www.usab.com/news-events/new...-unveiled.aspx
    Chelsea Grey going for her first Olympic gold medal!!
    Why are you wasting time here when you could be wasting it by listening to the latest episode of the DBR Podcast?

  4. #84
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Mount Kisco, NY
    Quote Originally Posted by JasonEvans View Post
    Chelsea Grey going for her first Olympic gold medal!!
    Great catch, and a bad miss by me. That is huge for her, what a comeback story. To be included in the group of 12, with some all time legends, is incredible.

    By the way, big congrats, Jason, on the Hawks, which I mention because while tiny guards are not usually FIBA standouts, Trae certainly deserves a real shot, if he's interested.

  5. #85
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Raleigh, NC

    Congrats to Olympian Chelsea Gray


  6. #86
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Mount Kisco, NY
    Sounds like Bam and Harden are IN. Wow.

    In an article about Bam, it said that Butler has already declined participating.

    This is shaping up to be a BEAST of a squad. Get it done, Pop!

  7. #87
    Quote Originally Posted by Billy Dat View Post
    Sounds like Bam and Harden are IN. Wow.

    In an article about Bam, it said that Butler has already declined participating.

    This is shaping up to be a BEAST of a squad. Get it done, Pop!
    Really hope Steph plays -- would be insane to see he and Dame in the backcourt together. Plus he's never played in the Olympics before. Hope that Draymond signing up bodes well for Steph to also.

  8. #88
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Washington DC
    Quote Originally Posted by Nugget View Post
    Really hope Steph plays -- would be insane to see he and Dame in the backcourt together. Plus he's never played in the Olympics before. Hope that Draymond signing up bodes well for Steph to also.
    Steph is out

    https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/06/...okyo-olympics/

    I'd rather have Seth anyway. He shoots a higher percentage from deep.

  9. #89
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Hot'Lanta... home of the Falcons!
    Quote Originally Posted by superdave View Post
    Steph is out

    https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/06/...okyo-olympics/

    I'd rather have Seth anyway. He shoots a higher percentage from deep.
    Seth is not in the "pool" of players being considered.
    Why are you wasting time here when you could be wasting it by listening to the latest episode of the DBR Podcast?

  10. #90
    Quote Originally Posted by JasonEvans View Post
    Seth is not in the "pool" of players being considered.
    That we are seriously thinking of Seth shows how hard he's worked and how far he's come.

  11. #91
    Quote Originally Posted by 53n206 View Post
    That we are seriously thinking of Seth shows how hard he's worked and how far he's come.
    His post season jump this year was pretty remarkable. He was the 2nd best player on the top seed east jumping from 12.5ppg to 19ppg and 50% 3pt shooting. In the post season he’s a career 47% 3pt shooter & 52% shooter overall across 34 games.

    I saw him live in the WCF in 2019 game 2…he hit a 3 about 10 feet from me (and 2 feet from his brother…i have it on video somehow) with a minute left in a crazy exchange to take the lead in a game they ended up losing. The fact that he was playing crunch time minutes (and playing well) in the conference finals was my first inclination that he would have real staying power in the L.

  12. #92
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Washington DC
    Quote Originally Posted by SilkyJ View Post
    His post season jump this year was pretty remarkable. He was the 2nd best player on the top seed east jumping from 12.5ppg to 19ppg and 50% 3pt shooting. In the post season he’s a career 47% 3pt shooter & 52% shooter overall across 34 games.

    I saw him live in the WCF in 2019 game 2…he hit a 3 about 10 feet from me (and 2 feet from his brother…i have it on video somehow) with a minute left in a crazy exchange to take the lead in a game they ended up losing. The fact that he was playing crunch time minutes (and playing well) in the conference finals was my first inclination that he would have real staying power in the L.
    His game is perfect for the Olympics. I bet the Mavs wish they had him back too.

  13. #93
    Join Date
    Sep 2016
    Location
    Texas
    Quote Originally Posted by SilkyJ View Post
    His post season jump this year was pretty remarkable. He was the 2nd best player on the top seed east jumping from 12.5ppg to 19ppg and 50% 3pt shooting. In the post season he’s a career 47% 3pt shooter & 52% shooter overall across 34 games.
    Seth has added a nice mid-range game with either a pull-up 15-ft jumpshot or a 10-ft floater, so defenders have to give him some room. Philly now runs plays designed to get him open, not just as a passing option on a drive by others. He's working hard without the ball to get open and has been able to make some off-balance threes regularly. Seth doesn't often use a step-back move in order to create a shot. He's also average on defense. I believe he has some more upside.

  14. #94
    I've been banging the doom-and-gloom drum on this thread, but the recent commitments have really surprised me and restored some optimism.

    There are a couple of ways for Team USA to negate advantages other teams may have--for instance, running a training camp so the team can be picked from players peaking at the right time, or keeping together a team core from tournament to tournament to breed familiarity with each other and the international rules. We've sort of abandoned those practices, which gave cause for concern. Team USA losses come in cycles, and it looked like we were due for another Olympic loss following a close 2016 tournament and losses in the 2019 FIBA World Cup.

    But another way to improve the margin for error is to bring true top-flight talent, and this team has it. A frontcourt with Durant, Tatum, Adebayo and Green, with a backcourt of Lillard, Harden, Beal and Booker is a loaded core. Concerns remain about defense, cohesiveness, and familiarity with international rules in a single-elimination playoff, but this is a great step in the right direction.

    Would love to see one more defensive-oriented big (assuming Anthony Davis is out, then Myles Turner or Jarret Allen--anyone know if Deandre Ayton is interested in American citizenship?) and a defensive minded point guard (Kyle Lowry, Jrue Holiday, Marcus Smart). Guys who will bring defense and toughness to compliment the overwhelming offensive firepower of the 8 guys already on the team. There's always room for Kawhi or Jimmy Butler if they want in. Would love to see if we could nab Matisse Thybulle before he's cap-tied to Australia, otherwise Mikal Bridges could be a good complementary option.

    But this is a great development, very excited to watch this team go.
    Last edited by Truth&Justise; 06-22-2021 at 11:13 AM.

  15. #95
    Three more names added to the roster for Team USA: Chris Paul, Khris Middleton, and Kevin Love.

    Excited about the first two, don't quite understand the inclusion of Love.

    Guards: Paul, Harden, Lillard, Beal, Booker

    Wings: Durant, Tatum, Middleton

    Bigs: Adebayo, Green, Love

    Strength appears to be in the back court, though Adebayo is probably the perfect center for this team. One more spot left, probably for a wing or big. I'd love to see it go to a defense-first player.

  16. #96
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Vermont
    Quote Originally Posted by Truth&Justise View Post
    Three more names added to the roster for Team USA: Chris Paul, Khris Middleton, and Kevin Love.

    Excited about the first two, don't quite understand the inclusion of Love.

    Guards: Paul, Harden, Lillard, Beal, Booker

    Wings: Durant, Tatum, Middleton

    Bigs: Adebayo, Green, Love

    Strength appears to be in the back court, though Adebayo is probably the perfect center for this team. One more spot left, probably for a wing or big. I'd love to see it go to a defense-first player.
    Guards are strong, but Durant and Tatum are a pretty solid paid of wings...

  17. #97
    Quote Originally Posted by Truth&Justise View Post
    Three more names added to the roster for Team USA: Chris Paul, Khris Middleton, and Kevin Love.

    Excited about the first two, don't quite understand the inclusion of Love.

    Guards: Paul, Harden, Lillard, Beal, Booker

    Wings: Durant, Tatum, Middleton

    Bigs: Adebayo, Green, Love

    Strength appears to be in the back court, though Adebayo is probably the perfect center for this team. One more spot left, probably for a wing or big. I'd love to see it go to a defense-first player.
    Thought I saw somewhere that Paul wasn’t playing.

  18. #98
    Quote Originally Posted by Truth&Justise View Post
    Three more names added to the roster for Team USA: Chris Paul, Khris Middleton, and Kevin Love.

    Excited about the first two, don't quite understand the inclusion of Love.

    Guards: Paul, Harden, Lillard, Beal, Booker

    Wings: Durant, Tatum, Middleton

    Bigs: Adebayo, Green, Love
    Quote Originally Posted by accfanfrom1970 View Post
    Thought I saw somewhere that Paul wasn’t playing.
    Fascinating--Shams Charania, who is normally one of the most reliable NBA reporters, tweeted earlier today that Paul had joined the team. Then a few hours later he deleted that tweet and replaced it with one saying "Paul has opted against Team USA this summer. Roster has been fluid at times throughout the week."

    So I guess Paul is out. But good news--we got another great defensive guard commitment in Jrue Holiday. Between Holiday, Middleton, Adebayo and Green, this team has some defensive aces when needed.

    The final roster spot would be perfect for Zion. Otherwise, Christian Wood, Jarrett Allen, or Myles Turner would be great as backup bigs.

  19. #99
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Manhattan
    Quote Originally Posted by Truth&Justise View Post
    The final roster spot would be perfect for Zion.
    If I’m Zion or his representatives, I’m knocking down the doors to the USA Basketball offices and not taking “no” for an answer. Zion would become a global brand overnight.

  20. #100
    Quote Originally Posted by Native View Post
    If I’m Zion or his representatives, I’m knocking down the doors to the USA Basketball offices and not taking “no” for an answer. Zion would become a global brand overnight.
    Can Zion still be added to the team? Would it require an injury to a team member?

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