Charles Barkley knows exactly what has gone wrong for Team USA basketball in Rio
If you’ve been following Team USA men’s basketball, there’s no doubt that the last few games have been a surprise. After opening the Olympics with dominant victories over China and Venezuela, the Americans have stagnated with three straight uninspiring wins against Australia, Serbia and France.
Yes, the U.S. enters the medal round undefeated, but it has real questions. And like many of us (myself included), Charles Barkley believes he knows the issue: the team's construction.
He went on the Sports 360 AZ radio show Tuesday and explained in greater detail:
While Barkley does occasionally get in trouble for saying things that seem out of line, in this case, he’s 100 percent correct.
I personally have been arguing since the day the team was announced that it was poorly constructed; that it was filled with point guards who look for their own shot first (instead of someone like say, Chris Paul), shooting guards who can’t actually shoot (Jimmy Butler, DeMar DeRozan), redundant wing players (Kevin Durant, Paul George and Carmelo Anthony all have relatively similar skill sets), and a low post player who is limited offensively. And I’m certainly not the only one who feels that way.
Furthermore, the construction of this team also goes against everything that Coach K and Jerry Colangelo have built since taking over the Team USA basketball program back in 2005.
That’s because while all the focus is on the star players who aren’t in Rio (LeBron, Steph Curry, Russell Westbrook etc.), what everyone has forgotten is that in the 2008 and 2012 Olympics (where the U.S. won gold), they had rosters filled with both star power and key role players.
Yes, those squads had Kobe, LeBron, Dwyane Wade, you name it, but they also had role players who have long-since been forgotten. The 2004 team had guys like Tayshaun Prince, Michael Redd (remember him), and a veteran Jason Kidd playing alongside those star players, and the 2012 squad included Andre Iguodala and Tyson Chandler, as well as a young Anthony Davis.
So with that said, who can you say is a true role player on this Team USA roster? As Barkley points out, the answer is essentially no one, except maybe, DeAndre Jordan. Maybe.
As Barkley says, we’re all rooting for Team USA, but at this point, would anyone be surprised if it doesn't bring home the gold?
