Why did Duncan fail at leading the US to gold in 04'????

[lefty]

Or it was "FIBA sucks"

[duncan228]

Manu Ginobili, who led Argentina to the gold medal and is Duncan's teammate with the San Antonio Spurs, said the USA has to send its best players to win.

"I don't think the rest of the world has reached the United States," he said, "but to be assured to win, they have to bring the best. In 1992 you had (Michael) Jordan, (Larry) Bird and Magic Johnson, three of the greatest players ever. Here, they are great players too, but they are young. They never played internationally ... it's a whole different game."

That was most noticeable in how Duncan played. Unable to figure out the officiating and in constant foul trouble, the USA's best player was seldom a major factor. He fouled out of the semifinal loss to Argentina in only 19½ minutes.

"If Tim Duncan knew this was the system and how he was going to be treated in that sense, I think he would have thought seriously about not coming," said U.S. assistant Gregg Popovich, who also coaches Duncan and Ginobili on the Spurs.

A frustrated Duncan, who said that he is 95% sure his FIBA career is over and that "FIBA sucks," was asked if he felt his frustrations would deter other stars from playing in the Olympics. "I hope not," he said, "I'll try not to share my experience with anyone."

[xellos88330]

I remember watching one of those games on TV. It was ridiculous. Every time Duncan had the ball, he was swarmed by 3 players at a minimum. The rest of the team would just stand around and leave him hanging.

Foul problems were huge. The officials didn't seem to want him to really play physical on either end of the court. Definitely not good for a power player like Timmy.

[diego]

IMO:

first of all, the 04 team was a complete overhaul of the 02 team and would have been called redeem team had it won. also, in the 06 WC (another overhaul, this one without duncan) they finished the same as 04 with a bronze, but nobody gives lebron, melo and wade heat for that the way they do duncan in 04. (not to mention, pierce, brand, j. oneal, baron davis, miller and finley from 02- aside from miller, all legit franchise players at the time when they lost to a team without a single NBA player)

the 04 team had good talent but was unbalanced. the biggest problem was they didnt have enough defenders, with some players that were just terrible: ai, boozer, melo and amare are the first that come to mind. it was too easy to attack the paint, which should always be the US' natural advantage over other teams. and on top of that the team didnt have any real shooters so it was easy to pack the lane against them. But I think its stupid to say that the 04 team lacked talent. That team needed smart role players, not more stars.

[spursfan1000]

LMAO at you thinking that Duncan can possibly not be a good leader.

[ploto]

Someone I trust on matters of FIBA told me before the Olympics that Tim would struggle with the rules, and he did.

[SamoanTD]

LeBron James is the best player in the world, bar none. Don't try comparing him to someone who's not even in the top 5.

damn man spit him out already sukin a lil to hard over there

[Darrin]

I watched this team. Duncan was fed a steady diet of post play. They had a bunch of drive-and-kick players with no shooters on the team. Lebron had shot .290 from downtown. Wade shot .302 of 52 attempts. Iverson wouldn't even pass the ball to Duncan. He would just expect Duncan to rebound against the entire frontline from the compe ion.

So Duncan sets up on the post with three guys on him, he pitches out to a guard, and the guard drives towards the rim. The defense has already collapsed on Duncan, so they had no room to drive to the rim. Hence, it would result in a contested, bad shot, and they would turn the ball over a lot.

If they had one more big man and two more shooters they would've won the gold.

[superbigtime]

he's ty and over-rated

Because Pop is.

[ezau]

Fiba game is all about ball movement and passing, which is very different from the NBA brand of play. In international compe ions, you need guys who know how to shoot and those who can read the zone. The US team simply didn't have enough shooters in 04 and every coach with half a brain knows that all you need to do is throw a zone defense against them. IMHO, Duncan shouldn't have played in that team. Come on, Iverson and Marbury in it? No way.

[duhoh]

why is TC's name so fail?

[Chieflion]

why is TC's name so fail?

www.realgm.com is his home. He did this thread or posted in it to criticise Tim Duncan to boost up Kobe's rating.

[Darrin]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZgd79r1_Ys

[Chieflion]

I have to say it again. Bait thread by troll.

His statement on Magic Johnson: "#1 PG by far, and #2 overall behind Kobe."
The thread was arguing about, "where would prime Magic Johnson rank today"?

http://www.realgm.com/boards/viewtop...61230&start=15

This thread is posted to make Duncan look bad while putting Kobe over the top. I doubt there was a need to do that.

[FkLA]

Duncan is Athlete of the Decade. Deal with it.

[21_Blessings]

Thing about Magic is he basically retired in his prime.

And he's still easily in the top 5, number 2 on most people's list.

[Chieflion]

Thing about Magic is he basically retired in his prime.

And he's still easily in the top 5, number 2 on most people's list.

If Magic played today, he is either number 1 or number 2 behind LeBron. To say Kobe is first without going through LeBron is ridiculous. Troll is unsuccessful.

[jacobdrj]

When you have Larry Brown benching guys like LeBron, Carmelo, and Bosh, you likely won't win a god damn thing...

Go to Larry Brown.

[21_Blessings]

If Magic played today, he is either number 1 or number 2 behind LeBron. To say Kobe is first without going through LeBron is ridiculous. Troll is unsuccessful.

To say Lebron is number 1 or ahead of Kobe without winning a le is the most re ed thing ever.

Lebron is the only one here that needs to prove anything. Wake me up when he wins something.

[Culburn369]

21 is correct here. Until James rings he is not worthy of comparison.

[ezau]

To say Lebron is number 1 or ahead of Kobe without winning a le is the most re ed thing ever.

Lebron is the only one here that needs to prove anything. Wake me up when he wins something.

Comparing Lebron to Kobe is pointless IMO. Kobe has an 8-year head start against Lebron and he has won the majority of his rings when Lebron hasn't been in the league. When everything is said and done though, I believe that Lebron will be better compared to Kobe as far as stats are concerned. However, he hasn't won a damn ring, until he starts winning the LOB, Kobe is still the better player. I'll give Kobe 3 years before he starts declining. From that point on, Lebron is going to be the best wing player of his time.

[Culburn369]

From that point on, Lebron is going to be the best wing player of his time.

Provided he's rang by then. One must ring before one can be compared with others who have rung. James ain't no exception.

[Chieflion]

To say Lebron is number 1 or ahead of Kobe without winning a le is the most re ed thing ever.

Lebron is the only one here that needs to prove anything. Wake me up when he wins something.

I am comparing impact on their teams. Not their accolades and careers. Everyone knows LeBron has not won but he is carrying his team of suck throughout his entire career. Just for the sake of comparisons, I am going to use the 1st six years of Bryant's career against LeBron's 1st 6 years.

Kobe's after 6 years in the NBA in terms of accomplishments:
All Rookie 2nd team.
Winner of 1997 Dunk contest.
Youngest NBA all star starter in league history.
3 championships as the top two options with the Los Angeles Lakers
2 All-NBA defensive 2nd team
2 All-NBA 2nd team
Made 4 all-star games.
1 All-NBA 1st team
1 All-NBA defensive 1st team
Youngest to make All-NBA defensive teams in the league.
Tied attempted shots with 28 in a half with Elgin Baylor.

LeBron's accomplishments for his career:
1 NBA MVP
NBA Rookie of the Year in 2004
All-Rookie 1st team
NBA scoring champion in 2008
Made the 1st NBA finals for the city of Cleveland but got swept by the Spurs.
3 time All-NBA 1st team
1 time All-Defensive 1st team
1 time All-NBA 2nd team
1 time All-NBA 3rd team

Very debatable but I would say Kobe Bryant had more team successes as compared to LeBron James who had more indidvidual awards. I would give the edge to Bryant but the scale might tip to James once he wins the championship.

[whottt]

They didn't have any consistent outside shooting, a true distributing PG, and the refs were replacement refs that strongly appeared to have an anti-Duncan agenda.

Kobe ...Ray Allen would have made the difference.

[Culburn369]

I just gots ta hope that when it happens (James ringin') it'll be after the 4th ring by Kobe will have taken reality. Christ-a-mighty, and I thought waitin' 3 years after Daddy rang/sans Kobe was the end of my misery. Now Chief lays it on me that I've got some more years yet. Bummer.