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WASHINGTON: When it comes to medals, a bronze won’t be good enough
this time for Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James and his
teammates on the US Olympic squad of National Basketball Association
(NBA) stars.
The Americans had lost only twice in Olympic
history, and never with an NBA lineup, until 2004 in Athens where
they were beaten three times and settled for a bronze medal. James
spent most of his time watching from the bench.
That disappointment led USA Basketball to elicit
a three-year commitment from players that began with the 2006 World
Championships, where James played a key role on a US team that lost
a semifinal to Greece and settled for third.
Now, the Beijing Olympics offer US NBA stars a
chance at vindication and the opportunity to reclaim their global
supremacy.
“We will be Olympic champions this year,”
James said at the NBA All-Star Game. “I’m excited. We have a
talented team that works hard.”
James, this year’s NBA scoring champion, has
been joined by Miami’s Dwyane Wade and Denver’s Carmelo Anthony
as a captain under the guidance of coach Mike Krzyzewski, the
long-time Duke University mentor.
James, Anthony and Wade were all members of the
2004 US Olympic team but spent most of their time on the bench.
“Four years ago, I wasn’t put in the
position I could care. I didn’t get to go out and play the way I
could,” James said. “This time I’m a captain and I know we are
going to be a very tough team to beat.”
With such stars as Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe
Bryant
, the 2008 NBA Most Valuable Player, adding
scoring punch, the Americans figure to be formidable once more.
“We have guys who don’t want to lose—Kobe,
Carmelo, Dwyane Wade—and the guys off the bench are very good,”
James said.
“We’ve got so many great players and a great
coach in Coach K who allows us to do what we want to do as long as
we don’t let things get out of hand.”
-- AFP
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