Team USA v Canada

[milesfides]

Hmmm...no thread at all? Anybody else see this game?

First off, our Laker Kobe Bryant...

Played the most balanced game out of anybody I thought. Didn't rush shots (some of the guys were just jacking it up), hit some key shots (clutch basket from waaaaaay beyond the three-point line as the shot clock expired in the first quarter - game was disturbingly close before he hit it). Handled the ball a lot, got his teammates involved, played a very unselfish game. Played very controlled, he looked smooth out there.

Defensively was the best player on the floor. Did a great job defensively, both individual and help defense.

Other thoughts:

-CP3 and Deron Williams were dynamic! Canada had NO answer for these guys.

-Kidd wasn't much of a factor. In fact, his passes were a bit off, kinda sloppy with the ball, and his defense was a bit slow (his man hit a few open threes).

-Dwayne Wade was very aggressive, attacking the basket, shooting the ball. Looks like his usual self.

-Melo should stop shooting threes and stick with what he does best. Get close to the basket to finish gimme passes.

-Redd is just GUNNING IT!!! Hilarious, no hesitation, he will shoot, shoot, shoot. He can't miss at the corner, but he missed ugly (airballs) when he tried to shoot anywhere else. But he was dropping some bombs.


Last comment: I'd suggest starting one of the point guards, CP3 or Deron, for Kidd. Clearly those two guys are now ready for the big show.

[UThinkUrSoGood]

Boozer didn't seem to get a good amount of playing time, with the lead that high I'm surprised he didn't get in at least 10 minutes.

Jason Kidd did decent IMO, I rather have him take no shots at all and juss keep doing what he does in the playmaking area.

Paul Pierce did a great job getting fatter and talking smack at home.

Dwight was a beast for the limited amount of minutes he got.

[kno]

I disagree with that last line Miles.

Keep Kidd in the starting lineup. His quality of play might not be as good as that of Paul/Deron, but honestly, that starting lineup doesnt need a creator. The PG will be playing next to Bryant anyway, who we all know is one of the best creators on the team.

Kidd/Kobe should work out just fine. It was an off-game for Kidd. I wouldnt look into it much.

I mean, look at how he played with Kobe in the international games a few months ago. They were stunning.

Keep Deron/Paul as backcourt mates to man the 2nd unit. Did you see the chemistry those two guys have together? It was just a beauty to watch these two run circles around anyone who dared get close to them. Im sure Kidd/Kobe is enough to get the ball to Wade and lob it in to Howard once in a while.

I'd also like to add, Bosh needs to step it up. Canada's Fs werent exactly the most physical, but he was easily getting bumped outta the paint. He's gonna need to step his game up big time, especially with Amare declining to play.

[TyCobb]

My thoughts:

- Paul should be starting point guard.
- Kidd, Melo, Boozer, and Bosh shouldn't even be on the team.
- That said, Oden or Bynum with Howard downlow would be DEADLY.
- Rebounding is whack.

[That Nicka]

I was at the game... So much fun to watch!

[LLcoleJ]

where they air it?

[AceFresh]

ESPN ^.

[Squirrel Boy]

I didnt see nobody in that team outside of Kobe playing unselfishly. I'm not talking Chris Paul or PGs either.

All the other guys only cared about themselves and chucked it. They kept chucking up shots.

[DubaLakers]

What about the FLOW Miles? Were they running plays? How was the defense? BTW Kidd is on the team for a reason, he's the coach on the floor. Really working well with everyone, hell be fine. He is the only guy on the team with a Gold Medal.

[laduane1]

I set my DVR to watch it later on. I hoped we win. But 55 points. Not the kind of game I was looking forward to. But fun to see some of the other players out there. Wish Bosh was a Laker. Kidd should not be there. Time to turn to some younger players. Paul and Williams will be there when it counts.

[Gek]

Didn't watch the whole game (only saw the beginning, my girl called became free so I hung with her), but from what I saw, we played well.

- Kidd should be there, Coach K said his presence (and his 38-0 Record) really help bond the team, idt he should start though, just does out of respect.
- Melo should be there, he's been our most consistent player the past few years, and he jacked shots with everyone else, but we were playing Canada minus their NBA players (except that randolph guy or w/e)
- Kobe had 4 fouls and 4 to's and was a non-factor offensively (15 pts, but 4 TO's cancel some of that out), but played good D
- The team seems to like each other
- I see gold for 08!

[milesfides]

What about the FLOW Miles? Were they running plays? How was the defense? BTW Kidd is on the team for a reason, he's the coach on the floor. Really working well with everyone, hell be fine. He is the only guy on the team with a Gold Medal.

The best flow occurred when either Deron Williams or Chris Paul, or both, was on the floor.

There wasn't much flow with the starters.

Overall, defense wasn't that impressive in the beginning. Again, the only guy who seemed intent on playing defense was Kobe on the perimeter. I"m sure Dwight Howard was playing good D except the canadian big men were stiffs.

I expected to see Kidd do his thing defensively, but I didn't see it at all. His man was in fact dropping bombs.

Maybe it was just an off game, but considering how well Chris and Deron were playing, I'd rather see what happens when one of these guys runs with the starters.

Not to get carried away, we blew them out as the game went on, but the only real positives you can say is:

-Deron and Chris have matured greatly
-D-Wade is healthy
-Kobe is still committed to shutting down the opponent's best player, making plays on offense, and picking and choosing when to score

[crazyeights]

Kidd had zero assists and zero points...is he just a decoy out there. I mean what's up with this guy?

Honestly he looked horrible when he was on the Mavs at the end of the season...is he done or what?

[Sedale Threatt]

He's an older player who is on the team primarily to provide experience and leadership. Would I put him in the starting lineup? Probably not. But the rest of the team obviously has a huge amount of respect for him, so why not give him what amounts to a token starting role. Plus, I really like the joint Paul/Williams backcourt K is experimenting with. Let Kidd start, go for five minutes, then bring in those two. (Side note -- Miles was right, they are great together. And so, so fun to watch.)

Otherwise, I'm still a little bit leery with this team:

1. I wish we had one more big man. Bosh is a small forward masquerading as a power forward, and Boozer is just bad -- an undersized player who looks like he's still mired in the middle of a slump. He might be the worst player on the roster. I expect that LeBron will get extensive minutes at the 4, and I expect he'll do well. Still, it would be nice to have one more legitimate center for insurance purposes. All it takes is for one crappy FIBA ref to sit Howard on the bench in the gold medal game and the whole thing could be sunk.

2. I wish we had one more pure shooter. This is probably just nit-picking, but considering we only have one pure shooter on the roster in Redd -- who looked unbelievable -- I wouldn't mind having one more, just for the sake of flexibility. Williams, Paul, Wade, LeBron, Melo, Prince -- all of those guys can shoot, but I wouldn't exactly call them shooters. Having another automatic shooter to throw out there with Redd, plus Kobe, would be a nice safety net. Because just like foul trouble to Howard at a key juncture, all it takes is for one cold quarter, as we learned against Greece in the WCs, and you're done.

3. I'm not sold on our defense. We played significantly better in the second half, but I'd put that up more to Canada's fatigue and lack of depth over anything we did. No question the effort was evident; we played extremely hard. The cohesion just wasn't there, and I'm not sure it will be considering none of the guys on the team, save Bryant and Prince and possibly Howard, are really noted as exceptional defensive players.

This is one of the drawbacks of assembling an all-star team, because the selection process invariably leans towards offensive-minded players, like Anthony. Even Kobe, despite the sacrifice he's made by embracing the role of stopper, irritates with his over-aggressiveness and gambling. I read an article somewhere that charted 40% of Canada's shots as being uncontested. Do that against the likes of Greece or Spain, and they're just going to shred us.

Overall, I still like our chances a ton. This team is clearly locked in and focused on winning it. It is obvious everyone has put aside their egos and individual games for the sake of the team. But we do have some weaknesses, and I'm hoping they don't cost us in the end.

[ChocolateThundr]

I agree on we need another big man but we didn't have many options this yr next time I predict Howard/oden/bynum for next time