USA vs. rest of the world

[leo_d]

Watching the spurs vs. heat made me think if an all international team could defeat the USNT.

a team with Parker, Ginobili, Nowitzki, Ibaka, the Gasol brothers and Noah would be better than Spain and could make run for the win.

there are positions that would have to be filled with not nba players, but i guess they will take 2 games in a 7 game series.

[Seventyniner]

World beats USA 4-1 imo. The USA national team already has trouble winning at the Olympics, and that's with all of the international talent spread among the individual national teams.

[024]

Depends if Kobe is on the team or not. If not, Dwight, Lebron, Durant, Leonard, and Lillard would wreck any team out there.

Not to mention the depth of Davis, CP3, Harden, Bosh, Wade...

[SnakeBoy]

I don't think so. The biggest problem the USNT has is that they are a collection of tremendously talented individuals with little experience playing together as a team. An all international team would be a collection of much less talented individuals with the same problem.

[benfti]

Parker
Dragic
batum
Ibaka
Noah

Rubio
Ginobili
Deng
P.Gasol
M.Gasol

Mills
Belinelli
Antetokounmpo
Nowizki
Bogut.


id say that roster, if coached by Pop would give team USA a serious run

[DesignatedT]

If both had the proper coaching and adequate time to prepare. USA hands down.

USA struggles sometimes because they lack chemistry which we all know is huge.

[Manu'sMagicalLeftHand]

This thread has been done, like a hundred times since 2002. Not bashing the OP, but the subject keeps coming back.

(Deep breath) Ok, let's do this.

First, Team USA represented by NBA players has already lost half a dozen times to other nations which weren't All-World, but single countries. That means some of those players were playing and training together since they were kids and have very good chemistry. An All-World team would lose that chemistry factor, they'd need a very long training camp and practice matches. Since USA Basketball kickstarted their program after those losses, they made a good job recruiting most of the best talent and get them to play as a team. Last part of the sentence the key in there, and for every basketball game played anywhere. Doesn't matter how stacked you are, going 1v5 can win you a couple of games, but it simply won't work most of the time.

This swing in the Spurs style first and other franchises following them has been in part influenced by the way some of those teams managed to beat USA Basketball with less individual talent. Pop slowly started moving away from 4-down and iso between 2003 and 2005, adding flex (played by Argentina), high pick&rolls (Greece/former Yugoslavia nations), pick and pops (Spain/Argentina/Germany), Princeton, Dribble Drive and variations of the Shuffle offense.

Now, for your question. 6-8 years ago? Definitely, but many of the international stars are in the fading days of their careers and most of the generation that comes behind hasn't looked capable of reaching those heights. Making it harder for the All-World team, back then Kobe was the only USA star in his prime who would get involved in USA Basketball. Nowadays with Lebron, Wade, Durant and co. on top of their games, it'd be really hard to upset them.

Back then, the squad would've included in their respective primes or close:

- TP
- Nash
- Manu
- Kirilenko
- Pau Gasol
- Nowitzki
- Yao

And adding solid FIBA players like Scola, Nocioni, Oberto, Navarro, Nene, Leandro Barbosa, Loul Deng, Raja Bell, Bogut, Turkoglu, etc.

Nowadays, it would require chossing between TOSB and younger players, but skip to 2016, and the team would have players with very specific skill sets. It also would lack people that can score or take over the game in crunch time, apart from the usual suspects. And the selection isn't that obvious, there are many players to choose from, but they're quite even following their career performances so far:

- Parker
- Calderon?
- Mills?
- Barea?
- Dragic
- Rubio?
- Belinelli?
- Kanter?
- Gallinari
- Casspi?
- Diaw
- Asik?
- Batum?
- Noah
- Tiago
- İlyasova?
- Vucevic?
- Pekovic?
- Valanciunas?
- Ibaka
- Horford
- Marc Gasol
- Gortat?

So, there's a lot more of depth in international players in the present, specially since everyone followed the Spurs trying to find the new Manu, TP, Scola in the draft or Oberto in free agency. But apart from Parker, there aren't many proven players that can score or create consistently in the most clutch situations. Many of them have very specific skills: Rubio passing, Barea penetrating, Calderon playmaking, Beli 3 point shooting, Diaw passing, Noah, Gasol and Ibaka defending and rebounding. The SG position is quite thin in terms of depth and talent, so the team would probably play with 2 PGs or move a SF to SG.

Compare that with Manu, Nowitzki and Gasol. We're talking about 3 players that enter most Top 5 Int Players to play in the NBA lists and are HOF locks. Until the new boys prove their worth in the NBA and FIBA competitions, I'm sticking with the oldies team. And no, I don't think right now a Rest of The World team could do it, unless Manu, Dirk and TP go into full throttle.

[cd98]

Play NBA rules and USA wins.

[DMC]

Makes no sense to have world against country. How about we do that and players who are playing in this country cannot play for another one?

[Solid D]

Watching the spurs vs. heat made me think if an all international team could defeat the USNT.

a team with Parker, Ginobili, Nowitzki, Ibaka, the Gasol brothers and Noah would be better than Spain and could make run for the win.

The French NT (TP, Gelabale, Batum, Diaw, Ajinca, DeColo) actually beat Spain (Calderon, Rudy Fernandez, Sergio Rodriguez, Claver, M. Gasol, Rubio) in the Semi-Finals en route to the EuroBasket Championship last September.

Although Spain did not have Pau Gasol, JC Navarro nor Serge, the French did not have Noah, Fournier nor Roddy Boubois...not to mention Ian Mahinmi.

[TheGreatYacht]

Parker
Dragic
batum
Ibaka
Noah

Rubio
Ginobili
Deng
P.Gasol
M.Gasol

Mills
Belinelli
Antetokounmpo
Nowizki
Bogut.


id say that roster, if coached by Pop would give team USA a serious run
I guess I didint pay attention to the Bucks. But what has Antetokounmpo done to make All rookie teams? His numbers are worse than Bonner's

[weeks]

If both had the proper coaching and adequate time to prepare. USA hands down.

USA struggles sometimes because they lack chemistry which we all know is huge.
agreed, the US team would have more talent IMO.
obviously i'm biased because "america number 1!!!" but i think it would hold true

[Baam]

I guess I didint pay attention to the Bucks. But what has Antetokounmpo done to make All rookie teams? His numbers are worse than Bonner's

He needs to work on his shooting but his combination of defense + playmaking is already compelling tbh...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJ8M-TvJf1Y

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8C5yc5rOCLk
Didn't find a youtube link but this one is a must watch : http://www.nba.com/bucks/video/2014/01/13/giannisblockdurant140111mov-3105924

Don't think Bonner blocked Dwight and Durant multiple times...

[colargol]

Tony Parker
Antoine Diot
J.Noah
Boris Diaw
Nicolas Batum
:pop:

Just kidding.....:rolleyes

[jag]

This is silly. If we're talking overall talent (because there's no way to gauge chemistry for an All-World team) then:

CP3/Westbrook/Curry/Lillard/Rose/Wall
Harden/Kobe/Thompson/Wade/Beal/Hayward
LeBron/Durant/Carmelo/George/Leonard/Parsons
Griffin/Davis/Bosh/Love/Aldridge/J.Smith
Howard/Cousins/Hibbert/Duncan/Chandler/Lopez/Jefferson

Coaches:Pop/Carlisle/Thibodeau/Bud

Whether they can play as a team has more to do with coaching. I'd put my money on the US. No question.

[leo_d]

I think Miami is the closest thing to a dream team in the nba, and the spurs the closest thing to an all international team, not only for the players but for the way they play, and now is two years in row that both styles face each other in the finals.

With Spoelstra and Pop coaching both teams, the question is if the spurs have more room for improvement by adding Dirk, Gasol, Ibaka, Horford, etc (and losing Duncan), than Miami adding Durant, Westbrook, Howard, and Paul.

[Uriel]

The Spurs would beat Team USA, tbh, imo, fwiw.

[Genjuro]

Great post by Manu'sMagicalLeftHand. He's right: the level of the top international players is fading at this point. We're coming off a historically great international generation (those born between 1977 and 1982) that is past its prime.


The French NT (TP, Gelabale, Batum, Diaw, Ajinca, DeColo) actually beat Spain (Calderon, Rudy Fernandez, Sergio Rodriguez, Claver, M. Gasol, Rubio) in the Semi-Finals en route to the EuroBasket Championship last September.

Although Spain did not have Pau Gasol, JC Navarro nor Serge, the French did not have Noah, Fournier nor Roddy Boubois...not to mention Ian Mahinmi.

Spain's absences were more crucial. Pau is still the go-to player for Spain, no matter how much more effective Marc has become in the NBA. And Navarro is the perimeter go-to guy. They are the two best players ever for the Spanish NT, and it's not even close. It's like the Spurs without TP/Manu and Duncan. Or like France without TP and Diaw.

[EP Money Man]

Turn the heat off in the arena and I take international all day. I'm 'Mercian but we are wuss culture. Im
a san antonian, fat and need AC.

[IrisHockey]

:lmao no.. USA would destroy those teams.

[phxspurfan]

Dirk, Gasol, Batum, Parker and Rubio would be tough to beat.

[DAF86]

Tony, Manu, Batum, Dirk and Ibaka could hold their own.

[TheGreatYacht]

Tony Parker/ Dante Exum/ Goran Dragic
Andrew Wiggins/ Manu Ginobili/ Marco Belinelli
Luol Deng/ Nicolas Batum/ Danilo Gallinari
Serge Ibaka/ Dirk Nowitzki/ Pau Gasol/
Joakim Noah/ Marc Gasol/ Joel Embiid

Give me this team over any team, tbh....

Parker when healthy > any PG
Wiggins > flopping ass Harden
Deng < LeCramp
Ibaka < Griffin
Noah > Pedo Howard