What does Team USA basketball say about the state of hoops?

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Since we all finally agree on something I want pivot back to Biles for just a second... Since I opened that up for conversation I should mention something that hasn't been mentioned here that really pisses me off about the entire situation.

Some of this is her fault - some is the media fault (go figure)... She was so vague about her "mental health" and as Jason said didn't just own the situation as I was in a bad spot and rather than hurt myself I thought it was best to withdraw and clear my head... Had she said that I figure we wouldn't be having this conversation.

But what pisses me off is what she was dealing with isn't really "mental health" as we know it, see it, live it and discuss it every day in this country. Her chalking this up as mental health is an insult to anyone dealing with real mental health issues... It's complete bull shit for those lines to be blurred in this situation. Her not being able to compete in an athletic competition is not the same mental health as someone dealing with depression, anxiety etc. etc. in real life and for them to discuss it like it is and celebrate her bravery is insane to me!

I just had to say all that... You don't have to know anything about gymnastics to have watched her on the first night of competition (maybe last Monday or Tuesday nigh) and you could see in her face she was literally trying to suppress and hold in a lot of emotions. I got on twitter to see how the rest of the world was reacting to what I was seeing - it was like "The faces on Simone" and how charismatic she is! I'm like what the F - maybe I'm crazy but this looks to me like an athlete that is not in a good spot, she knows she is in trouble and she's trying not to have an emotional break down on such a large stage. Then boom 48 hours later she's out... I wasn't shocked at all but I'm really disappointed how it played out.
 

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Bluethunder said:
Got down early but stormed back to get back to the gold medal game. Hoping they get to play France and get some revenge.
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Your wish came true... Team USA vs. France for the gold

IIRC, the team that loses the Gold Medal game is the Silver Medalist... so, Team USA is guaranteed of medaling (again); 19 Summer Olympic games, Team USA medals in all 19...

Maybe Popovich's coaching and the team assembled by USA Basketball isn't as "bad" as the casual observer supposed...
 
Certainly wasn’t our best team compared to previous olympics and I think team USA is going to need to take a hard look at how other nations put together rosters and plan accordingly.

no longer can we just put anyone who we want on the team and have the world adjust to us. With the style of play and the skill sets of many European teams and their big men, USA may need to adjust a little going forward.
 
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Up 5 at the half but the way the refs are calling this game it is going to be hard for the US to win. France just throws it down low and gets to the free throw line every time. If they don’t get the foul that way then France just flails arms on any screen or switch. US will be lucky if half the team doesn’t foul out.
 

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Nice win Team USA. Missed some FTs at the end and played a little sloppy letting France hang around but a win is a win.

Another gold medal for the Red White and Blue
 
Bluethunder said:
Certainly wasn’t our best team compared to previous olympics and I think team USA is going to need to take a hard look at how other nations put together rosters and plan accordingly.

no longer can we just put anyone who we want on the team and have the world adjust to us. With the style of play and the skill sets of many European teams and their big men, USA may need to adjust a little going forward.
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Barely 24 hours ago...this sure didn't AGE well. Have you talked to KD or Draymond?

Just kidding...most of us felt that way when they lost the preliminaries.
 
I do still think they will need to be more careful how they put the team together. In years past the US had such a huge advantage in skill and talent that they could have picked any of the top 50 players in the NBA and won. Now other nations have caught up and, as France almost showed twice, other nations have much stronger “teams” that play more together. France’s bigs killed us in both games and had they been able to hit their free throws better (though we can debate how many they should have gotten) this game might turned out different.
 
Bluethunder said:
I do still think they will need to be more careful how they put the team together. In years past the US had such a huge advantage in skill and talent that they could have picked any of the top 50 players in the NBA and won. Now other nations have caught up and, as France almost showed twice, other nations have much stronger “teams” that play more together. France’s bigs killed us in both games and had they been able to hit their free throws better (though we can debate how many they should have gotten) this game might turned out different.
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Yeah, not sure why the comment didn't age well. We won, as we should, but the roster still stunk as it was comprised. KD is arguably the best basketball player in the world and if he is on, he can overcome quite a lot. Even with that, we only won by 5.

The team absolutely lacked a traditional big man who, if nothing else, could push opposing bigs out of the paint. Entry passes were caught damn near at the rim every time. This is an older chat -- dates back to 2018, but is relevant.


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While I don't expect Dream Team 1-2 blowouts, honestly with our best there with some interest in post defense, every game should be double digits. Other nations just don't have the breadth and depth of hoops talent we do.
 

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