Mike Redd, pondering world domination…This summer is an important one for USA Basketball … and some of its biggest guns will be locked in the drawer. D-Wade, Arenas, Chris Paul and Paul Pierce are just some of the superstars who won’t be available for Team USA in the ‘07 FIBA Americas tournament, which is a qualifier for the ‘08 Olympics. Not to mention names like KG, Duncan, Shaq and T-Mac who just aren’t part of the USA Basketball program for one reason or another. Team USA doesn’t have to win the tournament this summer to stay alive for an Olympic big, but they do at least need a Top 3 finish to qualify for a last-ditch qualifier in ‘08 right before the Games. So that said, who gives the U.S. the best chance to win? We went through the players who have been invited to this year’s USA Basketball training camp and picked the ideal 12-man roster …
Amare Stoudemire: One of the top bigs in the game. Great hands, able to leap tall building in a single bound, and the guy will dunk on your grandmother — he’s ruthless like that. Amare has improved his perimeter game tremendously so he won’t be a liability in the zone-heavy international game. He also runs like a deer and Team USA figures to do a lot of running. On top of that, STAT is a decent shot blocker and rebounder, but overall, he isn’t as a beastly defensively as he is offensively. But that wont matter with this guy around …
Elton Brand: Call him methodical and unorthodox if you want, but this man gets the job done. He scores in the post and is another big man who can hit the 15-footer. Team USA can’t run if they don’t have the ball, and Brand will give them plenty of opportunities since he is an animal on the boards. He defends the post well but is also freakishly nimble, so he can step out and show on the pick-and-roll. The walking double-double is the best on-the–ball shot- blocker in the game.
LeBron James: Absolutely unstoppable going to the basket and in the open court, LeBron is the main reason Team USA has a huge advantage over any team in the world whenever they run. He is an excellent passer and he’s selfless (he just doesn’t get to show it as much playing for the Cavs), so he is a perfect fit on a team that is loaded with unstoppable scorers.
Kobe Bryant: There’s no way this man gets left off of any basketball team. He must be one of the aliens from “Space Jam,” because the stuff he does on the court aren’t human. Mister 81 can carry his team offensively and is a terror defensively when he wants to be. His shooting range is limitless, so the zone defenses won’t bother him. If the U.S. needs a bucket late he is the guy.
Chauncey Billups: Didn’t play last year due to family obligations, but he will be a welcome addition to the team. The best shooting point guard in Team USA’s camp is also the best PG available until further notice by Jason Kidd.
Carmelo Anthony: How good would it be to have this guy coming off the bench as your 6th Man? He is effective anywhere on the floor and is deadly from 20 feet in, so the shorter international three-point line is a plus. ‘Melo also has international experience, but is another player who didn’t play much in the last Olympics, so he’ll have a chip on his shoulder this summer.
Carlos Boozer: Another big man who is effective in the post but can also step in to the soft spots of a zone defense and knock down shots from 15-18 feet. Booze is also a great rebounder who will give the U.S. plenty of second-shot chances and opportunities to run.
Deron Williams: Remember Mike Bibby’s breakout ‘02 postseason, when he played like missing a shot would have gotten him arrested? That’s what Deron’s ‘07 playoff run was reminiscent of … and one of the reasons he belongs on this squad. Williams is deadly mid-range shooter (how many Jazz runs are ignited by one of his pull-ups from the free throw line?) and a solid three-point shooter. And when Team USA wants to run, he can switch the tempo.
Michael Redd: The ‘04 U.S. team has about 38 swingmen and no shooters, so Redd will be a much-needed addition. One of the deadliest shooters in the game will laugh in the face of zone defenses.
Mike Miller: I’m still waking up in cold sweats trying to shake images of Team USA firing bricks in in the ‘04 Olympics. Miller is one of the few pure shooters invited to the ‘07 training camp, and he needs to be on the roster. He’s not in the same class as Redd, but defenses must respect his outside game.
Brad Miller: I know some of you are scratching your head about this selection, but Brad “no relation to Mike” Miller has all the skills that are essential in international basketball. He’s an excellent passer, a good shooter and a solid rebounder. Brad is pretty limited aside from that, but it’s not like he’d be logging major minutes for Team USA anyway.
Shane Battier: This is a no-brainer. Battier is a selfless player who can guard anyone from the opposing team’s top scorer to the ball boy and not complain either way. He rarely makes mistakes, can guard up to four positions and is a decent shooter.
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June 10th, 2007 at 12:27 pm
john says:
How can u not put BOSH on this team!!!???
June 10th, 2007 at 12:48 pm
Bron says:
cuz bosh was a stiff last year and couldn’t even finish layups under the basket so people are weary…my question is how do you leave dwight howard off
June 10th, 2007 at 12:49 pm
Bron says:
could you imagine a team subbing out amare and dwight howard coming off the bench? more than any euro star from gasol to dirk could handle without fouling out
June 10th, 2007 at 12:51 pm
nick says:
how do you put brad miller over guys like bosh and dwight howard? Also even though he doesn’t score much bowen would be a help when you have shut down one guy.
June 10th, 2007 at 3:10 pm
Russ says:
bosh was ineffective at best in the last olympics, and also was a no show in the playoffs this year….same w/ howard. they’ll just pack the zone in around howard….he has no offensive game…no face-up jumper. i mean you can sit there and say he is a good shot blocker or whatever….but what beat us the last few times out? PERIMETER defense. wasn’t like teams were driving down the lane on us all game, we were getting killed with 3 pointers. and bowen won’t get away with the crap he gets away with in the league in international play…he’ll foul out in 6 minutes.
all that said i’m not sure about brad miller….there has got to be someone else.
June 10th, 2007 at 4:03 pm
Bron says:
yea dwight doesn’t have any O outside of dunking but it worked find last time for him. They need some athletic bigs who can take advantage of the less athletic euros. and if were already answering the “shooting woeS” with guys like mike redd, we don’t need a big stiff like brad miller. he hardly even played after the first couple games when it was wade and melo carryin them. I’d take kyle korver on the team before i vote brad miller ahead of dwight howard
June 10th, 2007 at 5:15 pm
tredaddy says:
Hello people did we forget Dwight Howard…yes this teams needs low post players that can spread the floor by hittin the 15-18 foot jump shot but they also need a defensive bigman that can change shots like Howard and also Greg Oden. this team must control the boards on both ends of the floor and block shots so that the guards can extend the defense with full court pressure 2 make it a fast pace game so that we can take advange of our speed-quickness-and skill. The roster should look something like this:
Amare
D. Howard
King James
Black Mamba
Big Shot Chancey
Melo
Mike Redd
E.Brand
D.Williams
Booz
Oden
Mike Miller/perfer Joe Johnson if available
June 11th, 2007 at 1:04 am
SeattleFan says:
Instead of arguing about Bosh, Howard and Brad Miller, we need another pure shooter. Rather than Mike Miller or Joe Johnson, Ray Allen would be the best choice, if he’s available. Ray Allen is a better shooter and scorer than even Redd.
June 11th, 2007 at 1:29 am
bron42 says:
better shooter than redd, probably cuz his jumper is smooooth…but redd can fill it up quick, even quicker than ray. I’m a jesus fan like the next guy but mike redds release is quick and he gets to the hole better at this point in their careers. And if you think about it, he wouldnt matter either, cuz what really killed team usa is not being able to stop the pic and roll so baby shaq (who is supposedly close to 400lb now) flambasted them
June 11th, 2007 at 5:10 am
Lucky Lester says:
What Team USA really needs is a bunch of cats that aren’t so worried about their damn money that they won’t participate in the dunk contest. For God’s sake, “we” lose because “we” don’t know what the hell “we” means. I is all “we” seem to care about, and honestly it makes me a little sick. Dwight Howard is the 1st guy who should be on the team, because the cat loves to play basketball, and will come out there every second and give it all he has so his team will win. What a damn concept. Ray Allen plays defense like Luke Ridnour, and that’s why every team’s 1’s and 2’s have their best days against Seattle. What about Rip Hamilton? Plays as hard as anyone out there, and can fill it up from 18-20 feet. Kobe will give USA this one though, he’s ready to do what nobody else seems able to do lately, and get USA a fat W. Joe Johnson would be a solid guy, he’s much better on a team where he’s not the best player. But “we” need a “we” commitment before “we” can even think about winning anything. Obviously our talent is the best in the world, it doesn’t matter if its Brad Miller, Dwight Howard, or Dale freaking Davis, we’d still have the most talent. Have to think like a team to win - and that’s that.
June 11th, 2007 at 8:55 am
bron42 says:
And on that note..I rest my case
June 11th, 2007 at 10:24 am
Girlybballluver says:
What we need is a national team like every other country. There are plenty of great ball players not currently on an NBA roster. Other national teams work well together, because they only play with each other, all the time. They play as a team, because they are a team. Not a bunch of over paid, spoiled NBA brats. Yes they’re great at what they do, arguably the best in the world, but throwing them together for a couple months after the season is a bad idea. TEAM USA!!
June 11th, 2007 at 2:28 pm
Terrell James says:
I just saw the updated list of players (http://usabasketball.com/seniormen/2007/07_msnt_player%20adds-may%2023.html)invited to try out for team USA’s roster and I digress–Dwight Howard should make this team since Brad Miller is unavailable. Howard is obviously the superior player but Miller better complements the players on this team and his skills make him better suited for international play. Howard can be effective on this team because he doesn’t have to score and if defenses zone down on him, team USA should have bonafide shooters like Redd and Miller this year.
Howard also gets the nod over Chris Bosh because Bosh had a chance last year and was ineffective.
June 13th, 2007 at 9:55 pm
Mitch Davison says:
So, apparently TJ didn’t watch any of the FIBA World Championships last fall. LBJ was lost (I’m not saying he shouldn’t still be a captain and a cornerstone of the team, but he didn’t exactly give Team USA a “huge advantage over any team in the world” in Japan), Brad Miller showed us that he’s way on the downside of his career, and ‘Melo (6th man?) was All-World and USA Basketball player of the year. We had horrible interior defense, but TJ doesn’t have one big guy who can play ANY defense at all. I agree with Tredaddy, Oden and Howard would be better than B. Miller and one of the three offense-only guys (Boozer, Brand and Stoudemire).
August 15th, 2007 at 1:40 am
baller43 says:
i dotn care what you people have to say but Bosh should be out there. He has a low post game and can shot very well. he can d up almost ne big in the leauge so why isent he out there insted of miller
August 15th, 2007 at 5:57 pm
Hawi says:
umm ur gonna need D12 if u want that low defensive presence. one of the best in the league