Team USA vs. China Breakdown and Team USA’s Glaring Weakness
LeBron (photo. Mannion)Why Team USA Won: Even while China hung tough in the first half, everyone knew that at some point they weren’t going to be able keep knocking down threes like they did in the first half. The U.S. guards wore down the Chinese guards right from the start of the second half and Team USA ran out to a 17-point lead and never looked back, eventually winning 101-70.
By the way, as a side note, how bad are Yi Jianlian and Wang Zhi Zhi? Yi did NOTHING until the game was a 30-point blowout, and looked horrible in the process. Nets fans have to be feeling pretty great heading into the season. And as for Wang … how did he ever get an NBA look?
Looking Ahead: As Team USA looks ahead to games against Angola, Greece and Spain, those squads are fine-tuning their game plans against the the U.S. and we’re pretty sure their plans are all similar. After watching all of those exhibition games and especially today, why would any team ever play anything but zone against the United States? Team USA couldn’t throw it in the ocean until Michael Redd and Deron Williams knocked down a few perimeter shots in the second half. If you’re pulling for Team USA, do you feel comfortable relying on threes from Chris Paul, LeBron and Melo? We don’t.
But here’s the thing for Team USA: when opponents play zone, Chris Paul has to be on the floor the United States. Paul, by far, is best at getting into the lane and finding open guys. Other teams have to respect his driving and scoring ability in the paint, drawing them away from perimeter shooters. Team USA has enough problems knocking down shots event when they’re open; they need as many clean looks as they can possibly get.
August 10th, 2008 at 11:59 am
B Nice says:
Kobe finally looked good and Sun Yue could be a surprise for the Lakers imagine Sun Yue, Kobe, Odom, Gasol, and Bynum thats gotta be the tallest lineup ever if they are on the floor together
August 10th, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Kayfah says:
Nasty putback on melo, but good game
August 10th, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Joshua says:
china missed so many open looks if this whas spain the US would’ve been killed
August 10th, 2008 at 12:10 pm
fReSh says:
man i totally root for Spain. Ok I am european but man I AM SO DISSAPOINTED. The shooting ability of team USA is just SO SO bad. And Dwight Howard? Is he even a basketball player? I mean, how can anyone compare him to Shaq? He cant do nothing than dunk. No lay up no shooting, ABOLUTELY NO FREE THROWS. No offense guys, team USA is just off the hook, real good but man, I have ESPN Classic and I just watch the old games (and I mean these games show how good Americans once shot the ball) and ask myself…..what has happened to team USA s shooting skills……I would stop glorifying the dunk…….I mean if you are a player…..cause MAAAAN is a dunk great
August 10th, 2008 at 12:12 pm
Chaos says:
that kid sun yue will be a steal for the lakers. he can be really good coming off the bench. dont see him starting anytime soon
August 10th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Dagomar says:
How the hell did Kobe look good? He was 1-7 from 3 point range!!!
And this poor shooting from the 3 is coming at a bad time. Hopefully they snap out of it . . . fast. I’m starting to think Deron should be the starting point.
August 10th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
Spliff 2 My Lou says:
Sun Yue looked good. That block on dwight was nice. Yi’s put back on Melo’s dome may have been the play of the game. The US team needs to keep improving. Shooting and defensive rebound are the areas that need improvement.
August 10th, 2008 at 12:46 pm
Ernesto says:
Disagree. Paul is quickest and hardest to keep in front of, but Deron finds the open guy as well as Paul (check the assists leader on the team), but can also take the hits dished up in FIBA and finish. Plus, as you say, he shoots better from outside. They work well on the floor together, anyway. If one of them must be sacrificed for Redd, it’s Paul.
I think Yi still hasn’t fully adjusted to not being guarded by a chair. Him for Richard Jefferson?! Yikes!! John Hammond is the man.
August 10th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
B Nice says:
I’m glad we can read box scores but watch the game man Kobe the shooter wasn’t necessary if you had watched the game and i mean really watched the game it would have been apparent that Kobe has turned into a glue guy and what team doesn’t need that.
August 10th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
Amar says:
maybe play CP3 and Deron in the backcourt together, keep dwight in at 5. that leaves the 3/4 spots to guys like redd/kobe/melo/bron ?
August 10th, 2008 at 1:34 pm
plainview says:
Kobe still doesn’t quite understand team basketball, though he’s getting better.
August 10th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
Stephon says:
Yi’s Put Back over Melo was dope. Sun Yue blocks Dwight.
Overall a great game. Exciting 1st half. CP3 made a huge difference in the half court set, gettin other guys open looks. Melo needs to step his game up. Gd D from Wade, CP3 Deron and Kobe. China hit 50% 3’s in the first half but only approx 15 % in the second. If the US were to play spain and argentina, these two teams would give Dream Team 8 a run given that their long D shooting are on point.
August 10th, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Borgs says:
I wonder if Professor Fraschilla was watching when “the best team” got brained by Spain (81-66) today.
August 10th, 2008 at 1:51 pm
georg says:
didn’t see Wang Zhi Zhi quite as bad as Yi. but what was up with Yao barely ever getting the ball in the post and then shooting threes instead. ridiculous ..
August 10th, 2008 at 2:06 pm
word says:
like i said b4, usa has gold on lock and will face no problems (they should win ever game except maybe spain and possibly argentina)
August 10th, 2008 at 2:07 pm
word says:
btw, yao is injury prone like a mu********
August 10th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Ashlov says:
Dwyane Wade = 2008-2009 NBA MVP. If he keeps playing at the level he is now, he’s going to have a FILTHY season. With the Heat collecting forwards lately (Bobby Jones, Yakhouba Diawara) with all those forwards already on the roster, there’s GOTTA be a trade in the works.
Whatever they do, I hope they keep their 2010 capspace. Wade-Lebron-Beasley in 2010, baby!
August 10th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
doc says:
Whats Spain weakness,they must dont have one since everybody keep saying they will beat the US if they play this way and that way.We will bust Spain ass and play the same way we been playing.They players aint fucking with ours.They look good today but we beat that team by more than they did and all I hear is how good Spain is.I got news for you.The USA team is damn good!Weaknesses my ass.Kobe shot 1-7 from 3 wow,what about the next game when he go 6-7 then yall just gonna find the next thing yall can and say its a weakness.
August 10th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
Tha Boddy says:
Team U.S.A would not have this major problem with zone if they got Gilbert Arenas with them. Even without him being hurt they still would have overlooked him. Jamison also is as good as Boozer and Prince is not even getting decent burn. Jamison can shoot 3pt range and go inside for buckets. He can rebound and is a major problem for SF because of his size and PF for his speed… Those 2 Wizards players could replace Redd and Prince with ease and nobody would look for just 1 zone buster they would have 2 all star busters making it happen. Who agrees with that???
August 10th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
POINTFWD13 says:
kobe looked terrible. lebron’s two-handed pin and bring down, push and find was in one word…beast. Sun Yue was nice but in the nba it’s different. he wont look half as good as that. (home crowd, big game)
DWADE is back yall. If the Heat can find/trade for a big man watch out.
August 10th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Dagomar says:
You’re right Tha Boddy, they should replace Redd with Jamison to get more three-point shooting. What the hell . . . .
August 10th, 2008 at 5:50 pm
daquest?on happy bday to meee! says:
@ tha boddy u must be high… spain was real good and but they can play better, argentina had a real bad game but in case yall forgot in 2004 argentina finished 2-3 in pool play and still won the medal so dont count them out.
August 10th, 2008 at 5:55 pm
schoops says:
yao was/is still injured and certainly nota 100%, so I’d shoot 3s as well… and why the hell was he still playing when it was 30 pt game?
@ Fresh…. um, dwight howard is a beast. euro players have on average become better shooters than US players, but don’t go trying to bring our big men into this. Dwight will chew up Pau Gasol (and his crappy little bro) and spit him back out… dude is a beast… oh, and he DUNKS the ball cuz he’s strong enough to move 3 players out of position in the post. Wise up and enjoy your espn classic.
@ B Nice… Kobe’s a gunner for life, and I’ll be the Pope before Kobe is a “glue guy.”
August 10th, 2008 at 7:13 pm
AB_40 says:
I told you once and I will tell you again carlos boozer will be the most blocked player in this tournament he got blocket what 3 times? just terrible. You forget their other glarring weakness… rebounding. china 13? 13 offensive rebounds? spain will get 20 if they don’t start boxing out.
Spain has Greece’s number ohw my they just looked in shock when they got behind.
Germany or China for the 4th spot? and is argentina the detroit pistons of international play? all the talent in the world great strating five overrated bench and too Dayum cocky haha.
August 10th, 2008 at 7:52 pm
GarethChantler says:
this is not a confidence boost for usa
August 10th, 2008 at 7:53 pm
au61458 says:
The start of the game was great. Until China started missing all theyr shots.
But still, “lock for gold” USA will face a bit tougher games than this. Just wait for something other than China, Angola or Iceland. Then we will see the real face of team USA.
Still I think that US is the favourite to win the gold, but certainly not a lock.
And please dont compare Dwight to Shaq. Shaq is pretty good if I remember correctly.
One more thing. Saying Arenas or Jamison are better zone busters than Redd might be the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen in these message boards (and Ive seen some insane stuff),
August 10th, 2008 at 8:38 pm
BALLZ says:
I’m the biggest UK fan on earth but Tayshaun should have been left home for Mike Miller. One more zone buster in case Redd goes cold, or for that matter, put them both out there with CP3 Lebron and Dwight and watch them fools light shit up when they open on every possession.
August 10th, 2008 at 8:39 pm
bill clinton says:
@Ashlov, Yeah Lebron-DWade-Beasly possibly-Marion? for 2010 would be unstoppable! Go Heat!
August 10th, 2008 at 9:14 pm
Ferdiberdi says:
Team USA was gambling way too much on their press… they were too compromised defensively. out of position often.
anyways they will likely win the gold with their punishing depth, not with their shooting. hope spain or argentina doesnt get hot from the outside; it will all be over when that happens.
How bout that block of LBJ ripping it off the blackboard then getting it to Dwade for the slam…
August 10th, 2008 at 9:41 pm
HBooyah says:
Yi seems much more concerned with acting like “the man” than actually BEING “the man”.
August 10th, 2008 at 11:02 pm
P_Dizzle says:
I think a couple of things were exposed in this game. Team USA can’t play a half-court game. That first half seemed to be more of a half-court slow it down type game. Team USA looked awful ’til they got some transition buckets off turnovers. If they are forced into a half-court game against anyone they are screwed.
Can anyone on that team put a butt on a man. My ol’ high school coach would be rippin’ a new a** hole on all of them for not boxing out. Howard, Bosh, Boozer and Prince were exceptions with an occasional James. For the most part it was just trying to outjump the other man.
Does Michael Redd know that if he doesn’t have an open 3 to get rid of the ball immediately. Every time he puts the ball on the floor I cringe. He’s on the team to shoot the OPEN 3-pointer and nothing else!
I guess I just expect perfection out of this team. They’ll have their jock on for all 4 quarters when Spain, Argentina, Croatia and whoever else comes a knockin’. Lebron, Dwayne and Kobe look like they are here to care of business, which I am glad for.
Also, that first half I saw a few people hit the deck. I am so sick of the flop, may it forever be banned.
August 10th, 2008 at 11:12 pm
Harris says:
There’s a poll on NBA Gauntlet about who’s better, Gilbert Arenas or Dwyane Wade. They’re pretty evenly matched, but Gilbert is a great three point shooter. He would have definitely helped the team.
August 11th, 2008 at 12:19 am
F.L.A.S.H. says:
I’m Chinese and I’d have to say this is the first time I was proud of a 30 piecing, I mean did u see Yao’s face when he checked out or when he was cheering when the team was down 30 and still making plays?
Yi just had the gitters and had a lamar odom type brick shooting exhibition (laker fans u kno what type of frustration i’m talking about), but I woud’nt write him off as a bust or anything yet. Liu Wei was the only one not really turning the ball over every trip, Chen jiang hua is just an and1 player ppl call “the chinese iverson”, he’ll never make it into the league, poor sun yue got crowned by future teammate kobe, then lebron on an alley-oop, then dwight howard……
being the first time i ever cheered against the americans, damn lebron and dwade are f-ing irratating to see on the other team (dunk dunk dunk dunk dunk)….. I’m out like “redeeming” the gold with this type of performance
August 11th, 2008 at 12:23 am
Meica says:
I think a very good point was made in supposing that Chris Paul needs to be on the court versus the zone defense—his ‘don’t look back’ penetration breaks the zone defense to smithereens (the glaring and only weakness of zone defense: once it breaks down it’s not defense at all).
I’d like to propose an idea too. I don’t think Team USA’s biggest weakness is poor outside shooting, but playing street ball instead of basketball. Even in a game like today, where China came out with a lead in the first quarter, all of Team USA’s games turn into a slam-dunk contest. Granted, I can’t blame them when you’re producing something like 15 steals which turn into uncontested fast-breaks, but guys like Kobe, Carmelo, Redd (spot-on shooters mind you) never get into a shooting rhythm because Team USA never has to settle for jump shots. Therefore, if things get close late in the game they’ve never developed their shooting streaks and are at a disadvantage.
P.S. —> Harris:
don’t be an idiot. Gilbert Arenas is a spoiled baby who only shows up to half the games and can’t play defense. look what happens when he get injured and dwyane wade gets injured; wade conditions himself back into peak playing form and arenas mouths off on his blog and plays video games.
August 11th, 2008 at 12:26 am
Meica says:
—–> F.L.A.S.H.
yes, i did notice. Yao played with true heart and grit today and I really enjoyed it. His reactions from the bench were a breath of fresh air.
August 11th, 2008 at 12:30 am
Jon says:
China looked good for losing by 30, if that makes any sense; it was just a great game to watch. And ppl need to stop talking like Frashilla and making Spain, Greece, and Argentina out to be god-like USA-beaters if USA doesn’t play perfect. They can be a threat, but it’s still not USA that has to play perfect to win, it’s the other teams.
August 11th, 2008 at 6:40 am
luke says:
whos coaching china lol?
yoa isnt even 100% and they got him running out beyond the 3pt line setting picks then jsut ignoring him the rest of the possesion? when he got it in the post he did damage, his heart was great to watch though
August 11th, 2008 at 12:39 pm
MSkittle says:
True, this team needs shooters like Mike Miler and Ray Allen. Maybe even Kyle Korver too.