DIY Coach K: Selecting the 2012 USA Men’s Olympic Team

In little less than a year, the 2012 Summer Olympics in London will be underway. Due to the unpredictability of the lockout, the men’s basketball competition might be the only time basketball fans get to see the world’s biggest superstars compete for quite some time. Always in the spotlight of the international basketball community, Team USA will likely be the gold medal favorites and the selection process will be under intense scrutiny.

At The Good Point, we’re righteously excited to see who is named to this quadrennial assemblage of ridiculous basketball talent, so we all had our turn playing Mike Krzyzewski and had ourselves a debate.

Below, five TheGP basketball writers – Sam Joynt, Austin Kent, Travis Nicholson, Mitch Orsatti and Jacob Smith – were given basic instructions: name your starting five, name a seven-man bench, and decide who gets the ball with 10 seconds left and the gold medal on the line.

Apparently, picking the 12 best basketball players in America isn’t as cut and dry as we expected.

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Sam Joynt’s Team USA
PG: Chris Paul
SG: Kobe Bryant
SF: Kevin Durant
PF: LeBron James
C: Dwight Howard

Bench: Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Derrick Rose, Blake Griffin, Tyson Chandler, Stephen Curry, Andre Drummond

Austin Kent’s Team USA
PG: Derrick Rose
SG: Dwyane Wade
SF: LeBron James
PF: Tim Duncan
C: Dwight Howard

Bench: Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Amar’e Stoudemire, Blake Griffin, Kevin Love, Stephen Curry

Travis Nicholson’s Team USA
PG: Chris Paul
SG: Dwyane Wade
SF: Kevin Durant
PF: Kevin Garnett
C: Dwight Howard

Bench: Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Derrick Rose, Amar’e Stoudemire, Kevin Love, Rajon Rondo, Blake Griffin

Mitch Orsatti’s Team USA
PG: Chris Paul
SG: Kobe Bryant
SF: LeBron James
PF: Amar’e Stoudemire
C: Dwight Howard

Bench: Dwyane Wade, Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, Derrick Rose, Deron Williams, Chris Bosh, Tyson Chandler

Jacob Smith’s Team USA
PG: Dwyane Wade
SG: Kobe Bryant
SF: LeBron James
PF: Carmelo Anthony
C: Dwight Howard

Bench: Kevin Durant, Stoudemire, Chris Bosh, Derrick Rose, Andre Iguodala, Blake Griffin, Kevin Love

The Breakdown

Howard’s immortal lock
MO: No question, hands down, the center position belongs to Howard, and for many years to come. With Dwight Howard comes perpetual silliness, something that we know good and well that Coach K will not tolerate, especially on the world stage. Hopefully the veteran presence of Tyson Chandler, who will most certainly be on the bench of this team, can do something to right his ship.

TN: Hands down the easiest choice, no other center in the world can challenge Howard’s supremacy.

SJ: As far as dominant centers go these days this seems like the only way to go if Howard’s willing to participate. He’ll be a matchup problem for anyone in the post, but more importantly he’s the best defensive big in the NBA and will be the anchor for Coach K’s system

AK: There really is no other option here than Howard. Sometimes you simply just have to take the best player available and in this case the choice is obvious. I don’t know how well Howard’s game translates to international ball, but that doesn’t matter. The true question is how well will international teams match up to Dwight Howard ball?

JS: Dwight Howard has everything you need here: he’s strong, he runs the floor, he’s an underrated passer, and most of all he’s defensive minded. With Bryant manning the backcourt defense and Howard in the middle, that’s a tough unit to score against, much less dunk on (unless you’re Rudy Fernandez, apparently.) Although, Americans sometimes take advantage of their athleticism in the Olympics, running out a small, fast lineup. Three forwards work here as there are plenty of options.

Who plays the 4?
MO: With a real lack of big man options in 2008 “The Redeem Team” was forced to go small, starting Carmelo Anthony at this spot. Thanks to some much needed healthy seasons (160 of 164 games), Stoudemire is finally ready to step up and deliver on the international stage. Whether he wants to jeopardize his newfound health and play in extended action is another thing altogether, but if he is willing and can somehow have another healthy season, his talent makes him a lock for the starting power forward.

JS: Chris Bosh had a quietly efficient 2008 Olympics, Carlos Boozer’s game fits the FIBA style, Amar’e Stoudemire would probably look like Wilt Chamberlain against some of the undersized competition, and Kevin Durant is Kevin Durant. But for some reason, whether it’s the style of play or a personal sense of patriotism, Carmelo Anthony becomes an entirely different player during FIBA play. While both are nigh-unstoppable scorers, basically the only thing that puts Carmelo over Durantula here is the experience, the proof I’ve seen that Melo makes himself look like the best player in the world during international competition.

AK: Duncan’s role here is that of a supervisor. Like an author hanging around a movie set when their novel is adapted for the big screen, Duncan won’t necessarily call all the shots, but will have a better understanding of the overall vision than anyone else. In addition to providing fundamental defense, he can balance the personalities on the floor if/when things start to go haywire. With a lineup as young as this one, the rest of the kids will need a constant reminder they’re not just playing an exhibition game.

TN: Sure, he’s getting older and has lost some of his brutal effectiveness, but Kevin Garnett hasn’t lost his legendary competitive streak. After what will likely be a shortened NBA season, KG will have the health and energy to win gold. All he needs to do here is bust his ass on defense, and with Howard’s big presence at center, he can prowl and hound the paint with more wiggle room than usual.

SJ: I thought about slotting a few other players at power forward, but I think LeBron is the right choice at the four for international ball. At 6’8″, he’s just as tall as pretty much anyone he’ll be matching up with, and he’s so strong that he won’t give up anything if teams try to put the body to him. Plus he’s been rumored to be working on his post moves with Hakeem Olajuwon, and the Olympics could be the perfect opportunity to try out some of what he’s learned.

Durant vs. LeBron
SJ: The other benefit of starting LeBron at the four is that it opens up the three-spot for Durant who is more than capable of leading even the most star-studded of teams in scoring. His length will be an absolute nightmare to match up with for smaller international rosters.

AK: Question him all you want, but LeBron James is the most physically dominant basketball player we’ve ever seen. His only knock, really, is that he has an awful publicist. I don’t doubt his will to win for a second and neither do Pistons fans from 2007… or Bulls fans from 2011. He might not guarantee a win, but he’s as valuable an asset as anyone.

JS: Take the body of a starting NFL linebacker, give him the skills and touch of a guard, the vision and basketball IQ of a veteran and have him fall short of the ultimate goal of his career. Yeah, I’ll take him.

MO: Yes, LeBron James just had the most villainous seasons in all of sports. Yes, Kevin Durant led the league in scoring. Yes, LBJ was the (deserved) scapegoat for the Miami downfall in the 2010 NBA Finals, but that Miami team would not have been there without him, so don’t forget to praise him while you’re knocking him. Kevin Durant will get his time, but LeBron’s game is perfectly suited for international play. Plus, he is far too valuable an asset for USA Basketball to slight.

TN: The small forward spot is a difficult choice between a gazelle and a grizzly bear. LeBron’s grip on the three-spot is slipping, and right now Durant fits there more naturally. While LeBron’s stock is slowly dropping, Durant’s is climbing at a fever pace, and in the next few months King James will have to re-claim his title before he’s dethroned. If you thought you saw something special in Durant’s “coming of age” during the 2010 FIBA Championships, that was just a lay-up drill.

MVP vs. CP3
AK: Every team needs a player who can’t stand to lose. From high school hoops to playground ball, the team with the OCD point guard usually has at least a slight advantage. With Derrick Rose continually fueling the fire and busting his ass to eke out a win, other players will take note and follow suit.

TN: Sure, Derrick Rose was the MVP, but a team this stacked doesn’t need any one player to play like the MVP the way Rose’s Bulls did. Give me Chris Paul, the best traditional point guard in the game, and tell him distribute the ball and get everyone else hot. He will do it.

SJ: This is probably the toughest position to fill, with Rose, Rondo and Deron Williams all more than capable of thriving at the point. CP3 gets the nod, because his floor game is so complete. He’s the best distributor in the league other than maybe Nash, and with such a talented first line that ability is more valuable than any scoring punch. If needed to, he can also provide plenty of scoring. I still think that Derrick Rose is the best point guard in the league, but Chris Paul is the best fit for a team like this.

MO: This one is a no-brainer as CP3 has been the best point guard in the league almost since he entered it. When healthy (and that’s a big caveat) Paul has the ability to break down any zone, double team, or foreign guard who might be brave enough to think that they can guard him one on one. Here’s hoping that knee holds up.

Wade vs. Kobe
SJ: Kobe is still the best two guard in the world, and probably the only player that you could justify starting ahead of D-Wade. He provides veteran leadership, lockdown defense, the ability to both score and facilitate from anywhere on the floor, and he knows how to win. What more can you ask for?

TN: Give respect where respect is due. Kobe will be the natural leader of this team and is the greatest player of a fading generation, but D-Wade’s peak is now. There is no better shooting guard than Wade in the world, and against the likes of Manu Ginobili and other insanely quick international guards, give me younger legs. Wade deserves a chance to start before he is inevitably coming off the bench in 2016.

JS: Wade and Kobe both! Although a lot of Kobe’s 2008 tournament was nothing to write home about, he overshadowed it in true Black Mamba fashion with some heroics in the gold-medal game. That aside, Bryant effectively guarded each team’s best perimeter player, and provides undeniable leadership on the floor. Throw in the mystique and legend of being the best player in the world (for now, if he even still holds that title), and Kobe spends his last Olympic hurrah where he deserves to: starting with the best players on the globe.

D-Wade, coming off the injuries and Miami’s awful season, stole the Olympics last go-around by coming off the bench and being arguably the best player on that team. The only question is if Wade will be as equally motivated without the need to prove himself. Nonetheless, Wade is a no-brainer to pair with Kobe, and no backcourt will be able to hang with that.

MO: In what will certainly be his Olympic swan song, Kobe has far too much legacy to be usurped from the starting shooting guard role. Does Dwyane Wade deserve it? Probably, but he can rest easy knowing that he will be the top dog on the reserve unit and the probable starting SG in 2016.

AK: I know what you’re thinking; he’s not Kobe Bryant. There’s a reason for that and it’s outlined in the last question. Without worrying why Kobe isn’t listed here, here’s why Wade is. Not only is he a capable winner, he’s the most streakily dominant player in the NBA. Even with a starting lineup as stacked as this one, Wade would be the go-to scorer, by far. If all else fails – if Rose’s youth comes in to play, if Duncan’s age does – Wade is the rock of this starting lineup.

Debating the bench
TN: In this fantasy world, I put together a team in which Kobe Bryant and LeBron James are coming off the bench. Is there anything more intimidating than that? There is an absurd amount of talent on this team, and it’s just silly. Picking the four spot is difficult, though. Garnett, Stoudemire and Love can gladly share minutes, with Griffin coming on last as a luxury purely for a dunking and alley-oop extravaganza. With a perfectly well-rounded point guard starting, Derrick Rose and Rajon Rondo provide the requisite offense and defense as needed. I also debated putting Nate Robinson in, aka the most enthusiastic 12th man on the planet, but I can’t handle the fact that Vince Carter has the best ever Olympics dunk, so I need Blake Griffin to make it right.

AK: In my rendition of the 2012 team, I don’t want to waste Bryant by asking him to fit into a system, I want to hold him up my sleeve and unleash him when all else fails. If the offense breaks down, or if the game gets tight, I love having the option of bringing in Bryant to start a fire, even it simply means setting him loose to generate his own opportunities one-on-one. Durant is the next most obvious choice. His availability justifies the potentially-volatile decision to start James. If things go sour, personality-wise, Durant can step in without the whole starting lineup going down in flames. Stoudemire and Paul are position fillers, while Griffin can serve as an extra source of energy off the bench – plus it wouldn’t hurt to season him in time for 2016 where he may very well be a top two or three option. Love and Curry can function as specialists when needed, but who don’t necessarily demand playing time. I specifically left Carmelo Anthony off the roster for fear of a clique forming, and didn’t want the baggage that would come along with including a high-maintenance veteran like Kevin Garnett or Paul Pierce.

JS: The only reason Durant is on the bench is because Carmelo’s past experience gained him the nod, but Durant’s the kind of guy you want leading the second unit of the best squad in the world: Selfless, team-first, and oh yeah, really good. Amar’e has changed his play towards the selfless and consistent, with Chris Bosh an unsung hero of the 2008 Olympics where he focused exclusively on rebounding and defense. Rose is the heir apparent to Kobe on this team. While his World Championship campaign left things to be desired, the somewhat recent experience with that should allow D-Rose to be his jaw-dropping self in London. Andre Iguodala was a defensive anchor in 2010 in Turkey and I love the idea of opposing small forwards trying to score against a unit of LeBron-Melo-Durant-Iguodala. Kevin Love’s expertise against big guys will come in handy just as much as they need someone to keep people loose, and I’m salivating as I imagine what Griffin can do in a dunk-fest against a weak opponent.

SJ: My bench can do it all, and at least four of them could very well start without Team USA losing a step. Wade and Rose are already top 5 talents in the NBA, and Carmelo isn’t far behind at all. Tyson Chandler is as solid a backup to Howard as you can find and a frontcourt pairing with the explosive Blake Griffin more than makes up for any offensive concerns.

As alternates, they could do far worse than Curry and Drummond. Sure, there are more talented players to choose from, but would they really be happy being the last man off the bench? Curry is the quintessential team player who can play either guard position, and is the kind of knock down shooter that coaches like to be able to call upon. Drummond is just a kid. That being said, he’s got the type of body that doesn’t come along too often, and this could be the perfect opportunity for him to learn from superstar bigs like Howard and Griffin while winning a gold medal along the way. Don’t get too used to seeing him at the end of the bench though, because in another four years he could very well be trying to steal Howard’s starting spot.

MO: There was a real lack of big-man options in 2008, and the same still applies here in 2012. With the NBA evolving in to a much smaller, and faster game, the prototypical four, and five are disappearing. Luckily for Team USA, they have two incredibly versatile small forwards in LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony, who are both able to play the four-spot, which enables Bosh, and Love to help out at the five if need be. With Tyson Chandler firmly planted in the backup center role and the potential (guaranteed) leader in mean-mugs and rafter reverberating screams, they look set. Anchoring the reserve unit offensively will be Dwyane Wade who led the ’08 squad in scoring, and Kevin Durant who is primed for a national breakout after his performance in the 2010 FIBA tournament. Team USA will need to have a few dead-eye sharpshooters and after Durant’s incredible 66 he put up at The Rucker, he’s got that covered.

Gold medal on the line, 10 seconds left, who gets the ball?
MO: No, not Kobe, and for so many reasons. Wade is undoubtedly the best player in the league at creating his own shot off of the dribble, and most of these final do-or-die plays involve the player having some time on the clock. With Kobe’s explosiveness in decline due to 1300+ NBA games played and his not so favorable relationship with referees, D-Wade becomes the undeniable choice.

TN: Duuuuurrrrant. In the coming years, NBA superstars will be deferring to KD as the biggest superstar in the league, and the 2012 Olympics will be his real coming out party. Put those long arms within 23 feet of the basket and the ball will go in the net. Bonus points: Westbrook probably won’t be around to hog the ball.

JS: As soon as I read the question, I could hear my dad shouting in the huddle: “I don’t care, hit the open man! If he’s open, get him the ball!” That’s the philosophy I’ve always stuck with. But to not kill the question: Carmelo Anthony. It sounds weird as I say it, but I feel that’s my best option. Kobe’s going to be tired if he does what he’s supposed to and shuts down the opposition. I need Dwight to make room for the play with a screen. With LeBron? I get the feeling that memories of regular seasons past would creep up on him. Am I getting the regular season LeBron closer or the playoffs (pre-Finals) LeBron closer? I can’t take that risk in the gold medal game. Now with a choice between Wade and Melo, and on the FIBA stage, I feel like Carmelo could make the best mismatch against the opposition.

AK: All eyes in the world will be on Bryant, who will undoubtedly be on the court in a situation like this (likely pushing Wade to point and Rose to the bench), but I’m not setting my play up for an outside shot, not when I don’t have to. In a situation like this where I need a basket, I’m going with the only human being capable of generating a bucket through brute force and athleticism at will… and that’s LeBron James.

SJ: There’s no one more clutch than Kobe Bryant. LeBron’s the next best player on this NBA team, and while he’s hit some big game winners in his life, he has never done it when anything was on the line. In last year’s Finals he folded up like a card table. It’s Kobe all day, every day. I don’t care if he’s got the flu, or if his knee’s hyper extended. You sit his ass in the corner if need be, get him the rock and be sure to send him a thank you card when you’re adding a gold medal to your trophy case. He’s this generation’s Jordan, and we may never see anyone else come as close to the GOAT at winning time as he does.

* * * *

For the greatest basketballing nation in the world, the choices for Coach K are both difficult and extremely easy, but a decision I am sure he doesn’t mind making. In building the greatest possible basketball team from the greatest assemblage of players, there are few certainties and this roundtable proved just that.

And to our credit, we did it without swearing.

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