Two narrow victories set the cat among the pigeons for Olympics bound Team U.S.A – NBA Report
The U.S team knows what it means to be constantly measured and criticized. They are currently unbeaten in exhibition games prior to the London Olympics that will begin later this month. Out of the 4 games they have played so far, they cruised past the Dominican Republic and United Kingdom, while narrowly defeated Brazil and Argentina.
Still, fans and commentators alike doubt the chances of the U.S team of winning gold medal in the Olympics. That is the expectation from the team and the pressure they have to play with. If they have a close victory, they are still criticized. So not only do they have to win, they have to win by a big margin for people to accept that they were the better team on the day.
The US team is scheduled to take on Spain tonight in another exhibition game which will be a re-match from the gold medal game four years ago in the Beijing Olympics. The Americans won the gold in that outing, but the Spanish front court combination of the Gasol brothers and Serge Ibaka, and the relative weakness of the U.S team at the centre position, has the game up for grabs. The Spaniards have been playing together for almost a decade now, and will provide the biggest test yet to the Americans.
USA defeated Argentina 86-80 in an exhibition game on Sunday in Barcelona. Argentina had lost to Spain by 20 points a few days ago, and felt that the Americans are going to have a run for their money this time around in the Olympics.
Andres Nocioni of the Argentinean team talked with basquetplus.com on Sunday after the game, and said:
“The U.S. team will have to work very hard for the gold medal and I’m not so sure they will get it.”
There is no doubt that the U.S team is not boasting its strongest line-up this year with the likes of Derrick Rose, Dwight Howard, Chris Bosh, LaMarcus Aldridge and Dwyane Wade missing from the roster with injuries.
However, the fact remains that the U.S team is so far undefeated in the games leading up to the Olympics, even with this roster. The winning margin might be different for different games, but at the end of the day it is the win that matters. The U.S team will have a good opportunity to silence their critics when they take the court on Tuesday against their main challengers for the Olympic Gold.
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