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HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – In a definite sign of the times, USA Basketball released the 20 names of the 20 finalists for the 2012 Olympic team that will compete in London this summer via Facebook and Twitter this morning.
That’s right, welcome to the new world folks.
Surely, you could have guessed half of these names based on what’s transpired with the player pool the past two years. Either way, we’ve got the entire list for you right here:
Guards – Kobe Bryant, Derrick Rose, Chauncey Billups, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Russell Westbrook, Eric Gordon and Dwyane Wade.
Forwards – Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Andre Iguodala, Carmelo Anthony, Rudy Gay, LaMarcus Aldridge, Lamar Odom, Blake Griffin, Chris Bosh and Kevin Love.
Centers – Dwight Howard and Tyson Chandler.
No surprises there, with Griffin and Aldridge joining the party and Steph Curry and Danny Granger departing the premises. That’s a group that includes eight gold medalists from the 2008 Olympics and 10 members of the 2010 gold medal-winning team at World Championships.
Obviously, this list will have to be trimmed to an active roster of 12 for the competition this summer.
Your thoughts on this 20-man group?
hi
1)CP3
2)Kobe
3)KD
4)LBJ
5)Dwight
Reserves:
Tyson Chandler(his defense is very valuable}
Lamar Odom(if he prove that he is fit to be in the team during training camp)
Andre Iguodala(because of defense too)
Kevin Love(How can the best rebounder in the world not be in the team)
D-Will
D Wade
D Rose
Carmelo(If Lamar doesnt make it)
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Billups is injured, so it is not really possible for him to play even if he completely recover by training camp cuz he is old.
Most of Rudy, LA, Westbrook, Griffin, Bosh and Gordon has abilities that are too common among the people in the roster
I got you. These are in NO PARTICULAR ORDER, so don’t cry about the 1st name I list.
1. Kobe
2. CP3
3. Rose
4. D-Will
5. Wade
6. Durant
7. LBJ
8. K. Love
9. Dwight
10. Griffin
11. Melo
12. Chandler
Gimme this team any day of the week, they’ll dominate the Gold Medal game, (not to mention all the fun they’ll have destroying the competition up to that point).
Hey, all I am saying is, Kobe is old and banged up and there is a lot of young talent available. In the end guys like Durant, Rose, Wade, Bryant and James just have to say the wanna go and represent their country and Coach K will not refuse them.
If Kobe wants to play in London this summer he will. Still I think he could have played better and more efficient this season and played more team basketball. He takes 3.2 FGA more this season, where Bynum is finally healthy and proving he can put up numbers. Especially in the Miami game without Bosh they did not take advantage of their size in the post as often as they could have.
Billups and Gordon will probably not be able to play due to injury and/or having not played this season. Considering Howard, Chandler and Griffin to be abysmal at the freethrowline, I would only take one of them to London. Preferably Chandler, because he seems to be the most mature one and has a ring. Odom will have to prove himself, he is versatile but had a bad season. I don’t think Kobe would fit on the team, his shot-decisions are really bad this season and he simply takes too many shots at 44% FG%. I know he has made a living making tough fadeaways day in and day out, but i would not take him to London.
If it were up to me I would take
at guard: Rose – Westbrook – Wade – Paul – Williams – Gay
at forward: James – Durant – Iguodala – Love – Aldridge
at Center; Bosh – Chandler
I guess you can switch Bosh, Love and Aldridge anytime to PF or Center and if need be Durant and James could also play PF. You have good consistent shooters in Bosh, Aldridge from 18feet and in Durant, Williams, Love and Westbrook practically anywhere on the floor. Rose and Westbrook post immense danger with their speed and athleticism, Paul and James can set anybody up at any given time and when there is need for a gamewinning buzzerbeater you have Durant to count on. Wade and Gay are top notch scorers and drivers with decent jumpshots, Andre Iguodala is a great defender. Overall there is just so much versatility, talent, athleticism and size, it is a dream.
I guess one can argue whether to put Anthony in for Iguodala or Bryant for Gay or even Howard for Chandler but I dn’t think you can much wrong either way…
Starting five:
Dwight Howard
Chris Bosh
LeBron James
Dwyane Wade
Chris Paul
Second unit:
LaMarcus Aldridge
Kevin Love
Kevin Durant
Russell Westbrook
Derrick Rose
PG: Paul / Williams
SG: Kobe / Wade
SF: Durant / Iguodala
PF: James / Anthony
C: Dwight / Chandler
I don’t even know why they take 12 players to these tournaments, it’s not like they’re playing an 82 game NBA regular season. As far as the lineup, it’s a well known fact coach K likes to run a lot of motion, and with Dwight and Chandler manning the middle you can afford to go (marginally) smaller.
Starting 5
PG Paul (if heathy, Westbrook woud be a better repacement)
SG Koby (Maturity is needed as Captain, Can be Billups)
SF King James (Arguably the best one on one player today)
PF KD (The reason for the comment above)
C DH (No one would contradict to this)
Reserves
PG DRose (Great scorer and woud be a boost from the bench, it would be bad to show all of your weapons at the start of the game)
SG DWade (another great scorer can replace Koby) – Eric Gordon can have this spot in case of injuries
SF Iguoadala (Great defender – we dont need offense all the time so Melo is out)
PF Kevin Love – Arguaby the best PF now.
C LA ( Can Pair with Love at front court, Can be better performer but similar to Bosh)
XFactor G WestBrook (But if he is a starter, it can be Eric Gordon, Fresh faces have hearts
XFactor F Blake… someone capable ofl bringing momentum is essential
I place chemistry over talent so there must be at least two players on court at the same time that have been playing with each other for seasons… We look at Argentina 2004 and Spain 2006….great team chemistry beats talents-put-together-at-last-minute. So here’s my pick…
Starting five:
Dwight Howard
Blake Griffin
LeBron James
Dwyane Wade
Chris Paul
James-Wade and Paul-Griffin would be familiar pairs, Howard can anchor the middle.
Second unit:
LaMarcus Aldridge
Kevin Love
Kevin Durant
Russell Westbrook
Derrick Rose
Durant-Westbrook are the core for this unit, Aldridge can anchor the paint, Love can do his thing, Rose can do his thing.
Situational insertion:
Chris Bosh
Deron Williams
Bosh could step in with James-Wade if complicated matchup are faced and US team chemistry is really being tested.
Deron is Dwight’s good friend and we want to see them pair up in Brooklyn right?
This team is ready to face teams with solid chemistry like Argentina and Spain.
PG: Rose, CP3
SG: Kobe, Wade; Iguodala (maybe Westbrook)
SF: Lebron, Durant, Melo
PF: Love, Griffin, Aldridge
C: Howard
Think this gives the best all round team: scoring, defence, rebounding.
Love and Aldridge can back up Howard at Centre. No need for Chandler.
WHERE THE HECK IS RONDO??????? HE IS MUCH BETTER THAN ERIC GORDON?????
my 12 ..KOBE, CP3, DERRICK AND DWAYNE WADE
FORWARDS- LEBRON , MELLO,KEVIN DURANT,BLKE, CHRIS BOSH
CENTER -HOWARD AND CHANDLER – AMARE ?
ALDRIDGE AND LOVE AND THEN RUDY GAY
Here are my picks:
PG – D Rose, CP3 & D Will
SG – Kobe & Wade
SF – AI & L:ebron
PF – KD, Love & LA
C – Dwight & Chandler
I think AI is a great addition as he’s versatile, distributes the ball well and plays defense. He’s not required to score with so many scorers on the team.
I like players who play good defense. Superman, Chandler and Love can protect the paint and grab rebounds.
Players next in line to make the team are Gordon (guard) and Odom (forward/centre)
shakenbake…
Do you think the original Dream Team cared who were scorers or not? They took the BEST AVAILABLE players. D. Rose is a lock and he’s one of the most poplular players internationally.
Dont go talking about the old olympic team because that was way back then when their opponents are easy prey. Other countries are improving fast and they are no pushovers than before. If the Dream Team now doesn’t care, why would they take Michael Redd in the last Dream Team? There are lots of players better than him. Dont get me wrong but D.Rose is a great player but he will just eat up the position because he is not a distributer which he is suppose to be. He is a good scorer but thats because he is the star in his team and has plays for him. It is different when you have all the Stars in the NBA put together. What im saying is put the proper player in their proper positions so the team can run better and play more efficiently. D.Rose is a player in the PG who is not playing PG thats why CP3 and Dwill is better in that position heck i like it better if Rondo is there.
My bets (not my favorite team)
C – Howard (more than enough, putting Chandler cuts talent at other positions)
PF – Bosh, Griffin, Love (Aldridge is the odd man out, has a chance if the staff wishes for versatility)
SF – James, Durant, Anthony (altough I think Iguodala is a better fit, the US don’t really need an unidimensional forward in Anthony)
SG – Kobe, Wade (kind of obvious)
PG – Paul, Rose and Westbrook (Williams isn’t as good as he used to be)
This should be the line up:
PG: Paul, Williams,
SG: Bryant, Wade
SF: James, Durant, Anthony
PF: Griffin, Love, Aldridge
C: Chandler, Howard
- They dont need D. Rose coz they already have scorers plus Paul and Williams distributes the ball better.
- If Curry is there he should replace D.Wade and let Wade rest his injuries plus Curry shoots 3′s like free throws.
- I think its better to put one rookie in there either Kemba Kyrie or Jimmer (which Jimmer is most appropriate because of his 3pt shooting) so that anyone of them can get experience.
- Coach should be from the NBA not from the NCAA because the players they are coaching are already professionals and not amateurs. either Greg Popovich Rick Adelman or George Carl will do
kobe and wade are risk to injury, i think thats the reason of westbrook there. He could play more scoring
also i think 4 guards would be fine, cos james can play pg, and durant can play sg
the sf is tight, maybe coach k will pick the healthiest player at the end of the season.
gonna be fun to watch griffin, but if they go to experience, gonna be odom, love & bosh
griffin is young, he’ll get another shot. but too bad for aldridge, tough category
guards : paul, rose, bryant, wade (westbrook/billups)
forwards : james, durant, anthony, bosh, love, griffin (odom/aldridge)
centers : howard (chandler)
I don’t want to see anyone from the ’08 team except Lebron, Melo, and Kobe just because they’re the best ones(don’t like any of them btw). Oh and Dwight.
So should be:
starters- rose, kobe, KD, griffin, dwight
reserves- Love, Gordon (dude can shoot better than anyone on this roster),bron, melo, Aldrige, Chandler and Westbrook.
Give youth a chance. We have the best players in the world. Even against Spain, France, Russia, etc. We don’t need paul and d will. And for the idiot that said Paul should start over Rose, i got one thing to say- M V P
Ray Allen is wwwaaayyy better than Eric Gordon
And Dwade stop laughing all the time you can be better than Michael Jordan.
1. jordan
2. kobe
3. wade
based on anything, you name it
1.Jordan
2.Wade
3.LeBron
4.Nate Robinson
5.Kobe
Get it…..?
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Wade can’t be better than his own teammate. Plus, he plays SG, a position which MJ and Kobe dominate, he’ll never enter their conversation, nor their echelon
Let me tell you something. Kobe Bryant is better than Michael Jordan. Sorry Michael but I will have to take out your poster from my wardrove.
Line up despite I support latinos teams:
Kobe
Durant
Lamarcus no doubt
Griffin
Howard.
Welcome to fantasy basketball!
Here’s mine:
CP3
Mamba
Durantula
Earthquake
Superman
DRose
DWade
King James
Bosh
Tyson
Melo
DWill
Sounds Good?!
I’d actually take Bynum over Tyson coz they DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH INSIDE PRESENCE apart from Dwight & Blake. Bosh is more perimeter than post up player. I understand Tyson has quicker feet & more masterful of the zone but when push comes to shove he will be banged up more…thus the need for Andrew to sub for Dwight.
curry didnt do that well at the world championships in 2010. same with granger.
C.Paul Starting point? Serious lol
D.Rose would get that spot in a heart beat.
We need to slow down in the way we talk like we’re better than them in selecting players. We just see player s play not know them and I’m sure the coaching staff and the whole USA basketball org. has thought all of that we want. My point is, Bynum can’t play International ball hes too big and not as mobile where in international ball you need to go small. Curry is a great player, but Billups is far more better than him besides talent. I’m not impressed of selecting Westbrook, curry should be there.
the best of hte best are all that were listed …
starting five kobe…the best shooter
rose the fastest drive in of all times…
Durant…..skinny but dangerous shooter….dunker…3pointer….rebounder..alley hoops
james…the greatest of all time….
blake ….the new season began…its game time…fly like an eagle
howard…of course the superman….
the rest are of course the best..
you do not judge or say anything about em’ all…cuz they are the greatest of 2012
five in five out…still no changes…the score will rise..the defense will shake the world…..the golden trophy will again become the greatest trophy for all mankind……for the superstars of basketball they will win 2012London no matter what the people of this universe say…..last but not least….none of them play like me when i was twenty but its just that im not a qualified to play…cuz im from the small island in the Pacific..look for me…..and u wont find me….
Really a pick, for kobe and Durant are UNANIMOUS!!! but…
PG Rose
SG Kobe
SF Durant
PF Lebron or Griffin
C D,Howard of course…. what about bynum…. :O!!!
STARTERS:
Chris Paul
Kobe Bryant
LeBron James
Kevin Durant
Dwight Howard
Bench:
Derrick Rose
Dwayne Wade
Deron Williams
Carmelo Anthony
Blake Griffin
Chris Bosh
LaMarcus Aldridge
I would take Paul Milsap over Bosh any day!
I would take Aaron Gray over Millsap everyday.
PG ROSE
SG BRYANT
SF DURANT
PF JAMES
C HOWARD
PAUL
WILLIAMS
LOVE
ANTHONY
ALDRIDGE
GRIFFIN
BOSH
griffin seriously?i mean,i know he can dunk but the Olympic team?whats wrong with basketball these days…
Some people aren’t sure about Billups,i think it’s a good pick,him and Kobe can be the leaders for the younger guys,but Chandler i’m not sold in i would have taken Bynum to go with Howard.
I half agree. Billups won’t be healed by then, but Kobe will make more than a small impact on that team, alot of the others have FIBA experience. Andrew probably wouldn’t do it; like Amar’e last year, the Lakers won’t let him so as to not risk any injury that could sideline him, (he has an injury0riddled history). I’m not sold on Chandler’s offense, but he’s a big body to throw in there when D Howard needs a rest, it’s not like we need his scoring with Kobe, James, Melo, and Durant playing.
Good Post
C- DWIGHT HOWARD KEVIN LOVE.
PF- LEBRON JAMES (BOSH OR GRIFFIN) still undecided about that one
SF- KEVIN DURANT CARMELO ANTHONY
SG- KOBE BRYANT DWYANE WADE RUSSELL WESTBROOK
PG- DERRICK ROSE CHRIS PAUL DERON WILLIAMS
I think that’s they highest level skilled team you could pick out of they American players in the NBA present
I would role with the following, remember in the international games you really need shooters cause most teams play zone Defense. I wouldn’t take Wade or Melo. Wade cause of injuries and Melo cause of the ability ok KD to score. Bosh is a liability on the defensive end. Iggy would be a great addition along with Gay but a 12 man roster Billups is a vet that can make big shots but Gordon is a great shooter also. Toss up would be the Blake and K Love decision
Rose
Kobe
Durant
Aldridge
Dwight
bench
Westbrook
D.Will or Billups or E Gordon
James
Griffin or K. Love
Tyson
Happy for LaMarcus Aldridge, that he’s finally getting some respect. With so many talented big men in the league, it’s easy to overlook people but not this guy! He’s got all the moves.
Congrats LaMarcus, hope you make the team
Starting lineup:
PG: Derrick Rose
SG: Kobe Bryant
SF: LeBron James
PF: Carmelo Anthony
C: Dwight Howard
Bench:
- Chris Paul
- Deron Williams
- Dwyane Wade
- Kevin Durant
- Blake Griffin
- Kevin Love
- Tyson Chandler
If all these guys would commit to play (barring injury issues or other personal reasons)
Guards – Kobe Bryant, Derrick Rose, Chris Paul, Deron Williams and Dwyane Wade.
Forwards – Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Kevin Love.
Centers – Dwight Howard and Tyson Chandler.
Out:
Chauncey Billups – Great guy, shouldve played before, but right now, Rose, Paul and Deron are just better
Rudy Gay – Lebron and Melo are more potent scorers
Lamar Odom – The versatility he’d provide won’t be much needed with the talents the 12 above have
Chris Bosh – I’d just pick Aldridge and Love over him
Andre Iguodala – Same with Rudy Gay
Russell Westbrook – You already have the top 3 PGs on the 12 above, I’d rather choose Rondo if defense and playmaking is concerned
Eric Gordon – with Kobe and Wade as 2, can even play a 2 PG game with the guys above, he wouldnt have any room to play
Blake Griffin – Love the guy, but I’d prefer Love and Aldridge for they can also play C if the team decides to play Lebron or Melo at PF
I would love to see the showtime in the world stage
Cp3
Kobe
Durant
Blake
Dwight
I garantee success people!!!!! There would be all kinds of lobs n dunk n unconcious fade away(obviously from kobe n he will make it)!!!!
The lineup wont be permanent ***
PG- Chris Paul
SG- Kobe Bryant
SF- Kevin Durant
PF- LeBron James
C- Dwight Howard
6- Derrick Rose
7- Dwyane Wade
8- Carmelo Anthony
9- Chris Bosh
10- Andre Iguodala
11- Blake Griffin
12- Tyson Chandler
This is my prediction
Coach K always adjust his lineup.. So every game some players wont be permanent in the lineup.
I’m thinking curry got sent home cos of his injuries… For my final 12, I got:
Guards: Derrick Rose, Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade (if healthy). Deron Williams is my safety.
Forwards: Lebron James (obviously), Kevin Durant, Lamarcus Aldridge (very slept on PF), and Kevin Love. (Blake Griffin’s my safety pick)
Centers: You guessed it; Dwight Howard and Tyson Chandler
Billups? really? Anyway what about Bynum? He should definitely be on the team as the second best center in the league behind Howard.
NBeatz yes forgot about bynum he is playing out his mind right now
My 12 includes
Gaurds:
Kobe Bryant
Chris Paul
Dwayne Wade
Derik Rose
Fowards:
Kevin Love
Kevin Durant
Lebron James
Carmelo Anthony
Blake Griffin
Lamarcus Aldridge
Centers:
Howard
Chris Bosh (Has played this position twice with Team USA, and last Olympics some said Bosh played better then Howard)
Get rid of Bosh, he played like a shrinking voilet with this team, we dont need that with this team. Iguadala gone, Love gone, replace for Giffin, Westbrook gone, give Durant a break as well as the rest of the guys. They have enough scorers on this team. Billups gone, dont need him. D Wade hurt, he would just be on vacation. Paul gone, hurt. When guys are hurt the tend to recover and get hurt again during the games. Melo gone! 8 gone, I change a one or two but thats it.
The ones that might be hurt put them on as alternates, like Wade or Paul. The last time these guys played I hated the way some of the games went, because of some of there play.
i agree with that Durant melo wade james bryant howard they all been there won it alrready give the younger guys a chance
i would love to see starting live up as this
Derrik Rose (come on MVP)
Kobe Bryant (team captain, Best player in NBA)
Kevin Durant (co cap – proven leader in last tournament )
Lamar Odom (lots of experiences and can do almost everything)
Dwight Howard (super man)
bench
Chris Paul (need i say more)
Chauncey Billups (there are better guards but not a lot of better leaders + could be his last international competition)
Dwyane Wade (best player in most talented team in NBA)
Carmelo Anthony ( proven to be amazing scorer in international competitions )
Blake Griffin (need young legs that is fun and add flairs to Team USA)
Kevin Love ( young and great rebounder)
Tyson Chandler (we need a back up center right??)
you forgot about Lebron James in that starting 5.
REALLY? NO LEBRON?
To Wow : Starting 5 Chris Paul PG , SG Derrick Rose Sf Carmelo Anthony, Pf Kevin Love C Dwight Howard . Bench : PG Chauncey Billups SG: Russell Westbrook Sf Kevin Durant Pf Blake Griffin C Tyson Chandler . Other 2 Reserves Rudy gay Lamar Odom
really? billups over curry? because this team needs anymore “leadership” than it already has? that’s not even close. curry is 3 times the shooter billups is. curry got robbed!
Yes cause an injured player will do so much good for this team. Why don’t we just throw Greg Oden on the squad as well…
LOL Wheres the like button Belizeboy
ANDREW BYNUM!!!