Not long after the NBA Finals include (probably on Friday), several NBA stars will start preparing to join Team USA in preparation for the upcoming 2024 Olympics, which are slated to take place later this summer in Paris, France. Among the notable athletes participating for Team USA are LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, and many others, and the team will hope to use the Olympics as a platform to avenge Team USA's performance at the FIBA tournament last summer.
Of course, the most famous Team USA iteration of all time was arguably the 1992 “Dream Team,” which featured the likes of Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, Magic Johnson, and many more now Hall of Famers. In preparation for that team's run to Olympics gold, the team implemented the use of some high intensity practices against non NBA players, including at that time Michigan basketball star Chris Webber, who went on to have a great NBA career in his own right.
Recently, Webber recalled the feeling he had practicing against some of his idols during that summer.
“We got off the bus and we knew it was time to practice and we're looking over and I just remember like just fear, like this is the moment,” said Webber, via the Green Light with Chris Long podcast on YouTube. “It was great, it was the mix of emotions, fear, being happy, your dream is coming true, you're about to get annihilated, what's going on. So I remember being in the huddle with damn near tears in my eyes, like this is our moment. Because you have to remember Barkley is my favorite player, Ewing, Karl Malone, the big guys.”
Webber also spoke on how some of the other college stars that had been brought in to scrimmage were approaching the event.
“Grant Hill was you know touted as the next Jordan he couldn't wait to play Jordan,” said Webber. “Bobby Hurley wanted to see how quick he was playing against Magic, I mean it really was Bobby getting in the lane. I don't know if there was ever a more pure or better basketball day for myself or for any of those guys because we were in a dream playing against our heroes, and we did beat them that first practice.”
Will Team USA win gold?
This year's Team USA squad will have more big names than it has in a while, with James, Curry, Durant, Kawhi Leonard, Jayson Tatum, Joel Embiid, and many more stars set to compete in the Olympics in Paris.
Of course, it should be noted that the game is now more international than it has ever been, with the current three best players in the NBA–Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpmo, and Luka Doncic–all hailing from outside the United States. In fact, it was Germany that ended up hoisting the trophy at FIBA last summer.
However, there probably isn't one singular country that has more talent than what the United States has to offer on the international stage, even if “the field” may have caught up to them.
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