Team USA Still Needs Work, A Lot of Work

After watching some of the highlights from the recent exhibition games (against Turkey, Lithiuania, Canada, Russia, and Australia) there are some things that really have me worried about how Team USA has been playing. On paper, it's scary roster, something I'd love to play around with in my little NBA 2k8 game at home on my PS2. Unfortunately, here in the Olympics (or rather reality), I don't really have the luxury of being able to mash "lead pass" or "turbo" to alter how the player would normally play. I can't rack up 182 points (which they just call "a ton of points" because the number is too big) in a 40 minute game, 100+ in the paint, 70+ from fast breaks, winning by a margin of almost 100 points. I can't get Deron Williams averaging 25 points, 15 assists, and 7 steals a game, I can't have Kobe Bryant running up a 30 ppg average on 75% shooting, all the while tacking on 4 rpg,8 apg, and 5 spg. The closest thing I can get from this Team USA squad is potentially going 18-32 from beyond the arc in the course of a single game. I'm just arbitrarily making up some of these numbers, but you get the point. The game just doesn't run as fast as I can make it in a video game.

Here are the two major problems that I see happening right now on Team USA:

1.) They don't have an offensive set
If it's not in the fast break, then this team doesn't really look like it knows what it's doing. Everyone is looking to take the ball for themselves, and honestly it's not working. The passing previously had been better, and they need to look to do that more, a lot more. What see is too much of the "in your face" pull up or face up jumpers, in this case 3 pointers. Yes, I understand that the international 3 point line is a standard 20 ft NBA jumper, great. When there's 5 seconds left on the shot clock, then give Kobe the ball and let him do his thing. Team USA needs to do what it does best, which right now, is slashing, and kicking, and the mid range game. Chris Paul drives in, kicks it out to Kobe on the wing, to Michael Redd on the wing, hands it off to Dwight Howard after drawing the double team. A lot of teams will zone on Team USA, and the midrange game will destroy that. There are open shots to be had, Team USA just has to look for them. They are a good enough team that they can make up an easy but effective half-court set on the fly. I don't care if the goal is to get as many points as they can in transition, they still need to figure out how to run an offense, the whole "playing as a team" thing still isn't really there. At least play like they play in pickups, set screens for one another, cut to the basket, MOVE WITHOUT THE BALL.

2.) They don't have a defensive set
This is how scary this team is, that they can get away with just playing around and still win. I still think this team can be even more dominant. Sure Kobe Bryant can be the "Doberman" of the squad, hounding the best player on the other team, but teams like Argentina are going to have more than just Manu Ginobili. Someone has to go out there and stop the other offensive options out there, someone has to contest Carlos Delfino's shot, someone has to keep Pau Gasol and Luis Scola from getting open looks or getting too deep in the paint. Honestly, there's just way too much ball-hawking on this team, I haven't seen the whole "double-team the guy with the ball" tactic since like middle school. Just because the half court trap doesn't work and you don't get the steal, doesn't mean you don't have to play defense. There's no rotation out, and honestly, drive and kick is really the epitome of international play. Too many shooters are being left open, too many layups uncontested. It's like if they don't get the steal the team just has to watch because the only defensive option they have. All they have to do is man up, it's really not that hard, I see people do in the playgrounds all the time.

Now for a suggestion, that everyone will think I'm crazy for suggesting. Play less Chris Paul and more Jason Kidd. Before you start yelling at me about how Paul is a better guard, how he dismantled Kidd in the playoffs, how Kidd is old and past his prime, hear me out. Jason Kidd doesn't need his shots. In fact I would rather that he didn't take any. The fact is, is that Paul isn't really that effective in a half-court set, at least internationally, and when you're running a full court break, it really doesn't matter who's taking the ball up. I'm not saying to bench Paul completely, put him in when you have to play against the faster guards (like Ricky Rubio). However, I'd rather have a guy who can see the floor, distribute, and not have to take shots. Sure, he may not be as fast or as deadly as he used to be, but he knows the game, and I trust him to be sensible in developing some kind of half-court set on the fly.