US learns lesson, earns gold

In its best light, the Olympics signified a change in world perception, the perception of China as a closed anti-social society and the perception of the United States as a nation of egotistical and selfish imbeciles.

America was not too popular during the 2004 Olympics, and the failure of the men’s basketball team helped explain why. The Americans had all the resources in the world. They had the best athletes. They had the most money. They had the most experienced coaches, minds that had a connection to the game’s great inventor, Dr. James Naismith.

But it didn’t matter.

America also had a problem, and it was filtering down to the senior men’s national team.
Larry Brown didn’t play rookies — period. So ‘Melo have a seat and put your warm-ups back on, you ain’t goin’ anywhere.

By the way, it’s not Marbury, it’s Starbury.

Tim Duncan might be the best post player in the world, but Allen Iverson can’t be effective unless he’s shooting 25 times a game. And don’t talk about practice….practice, man…PRACtice. I mean…we’re talking about practice….not a game…not a game…we’re talking about practice…practice, man…practice.

But even with all that clashing of egos, the Americans could still say they were the best — until 2004 when someone finally showed them they weren’t.

Sure Manu Ginobli and Fabricio Oberto are nice players, Ginobli is great even by NBA standards, but if they played for the 2004 US team, neither one would have started. Oberto’s application would have been shredded before it reached Brown’s desk.

But here they were, representing Argentina, and winning the gold medal over a team that was far more talented, but a team that didn’t take the world seriously enough.

Sure the Americans were good, the world said, but it didn’t matter. They were too selfish, too lazy and too stupid to play team ball. In the United States, they don’t believe in teamwork. Everyone thinks they can do it themselves. That’s their problem. That’s why they ended up being third-best, losing to countries with a fraction of the basketball population of the United States. The Americans don’t have a clue, the world thought, and it was hard to argue.

But things are changing.

A team more talented than ever put their egos aside. It wasn’t seamless team ball, but they tried. They really did try. They made the extra pass. They trapped on defense. They talked only about playing together.

And when they won the gold, they didn’t act like they deserved it. They acted like they worked for it, like it was special. They actually enjoyed winning it.
They showed the rest of the world that the United States does value its spot in the world and they don’t take it for granted.

Argentina you were right. Hard work, dedication, teamwork, a commitment to each other, that is the way to play. That is the way to live. You can have some success alone, but you can go all the way together.

Thank you world.

You taught, we listened.

Peace.