The USA Basketball Men's National Team, commonly known as the United States men's national basketball team, is the
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
team representing the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. They are the most successful team in international competition, winning medals in all nineteen Olympic tournaments it has entered, including sixteen golds. In the professional era, the team won the Olympic gold medal in
1992
File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...
,
1996,
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
,
2008,
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
,
2016, and
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
. Two of its gold medal-winning teams were inducted to the
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...
in August 2010: the
1960 team, which featured six Hall of Famers (4 players, 2 coaches), and the 1992
"Dream Team", featuring 14 Hall of Famers (11 players, 3 coaches). The team is currently ranked second in the
FIBA World Rankings
The FIBA Men's World Ranking are FIBA's rankings of national basketball teams. FIBA ranks both men's and women's national teams for both senior and junior competitions. It also publishes combined rankings for all mixed-sex competitions.
Not incl ...
, only behind
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
.
Traditionally composed of amateur players, the U.S. dominated the first decades of international basketball, winning a record seven consecutive Olympic gold medals. However, by the end of the 1980s, American amateurs were no longer competitive against seasoned professionals from the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
and
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
.
In 1989,
FIBA
The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the (hence FIBA), in 1989 it dropped the word ''amateur'' from its nam ...
modified its rules and allowed
USA Basketball
USA Basketball (USAB) is a non-profit organization and the governing body for basketball in the United States. The organization represents the United States in FIBA and the men's and women's national basketball teams in the United States Olympi ...
to field teams with
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
players. The first such team, known as the "Dream Team", won the gold medal at the
1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...
in
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
, being superior in all matches.
With the introduction of NBA players, the team was able to spark a second run of dominance in the 1990s.
Facing increased competition, the U.S. failed to win a medal at the
2002 FIBA World Championship, finishing sixth. The
2004 Olympic team, being depleted by a number of withdrawals, lost three games on its way to a bronze medal, a record that represented more losses in a single year than the country's Olympic teams had suffered in all previous Olympiads combined.
Determined to put an end to these failures, USA Basketball initiated a long-term project aimed at creating better, more cohesive teams. The U.S. won its first seven games at the
2006 FIBA World Championship in Japan before losing against
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
in the semi-finals; ending the competition with the bronze medal. The team won gold two years later—at the
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...
—in a dominant fashion. This success was followed up at the
2010 FIBA World Championship, where despite fielding a roster featuring no players from the
2008 Olympic team, the U.S. did not lose a single game en route to defeating host
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
for the gold medal.
The Americans continued this streak of dominance in the 2010s by going undefeated and capturing gold at the
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
and
2014 FIBA World Cup. At the
2016 Summer Olympics
The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...
, the team, led by
Mike Krzyzewski
Michael William Krzyzewski ( ; born February 13, 1947), nicknamed "Coach K", is an American former college basketball coach. He served as the head coach at Duke University from 1980 to 2022, during which he led the Blue Devils to five nati ...
for a record third time, won its 15th gold medal, making him the most decorated coach in USA Basketball history.
After Krzyzewski stepped down in 2016, team USA lost to France in the quarter-finals of the
2019 FIBA World Cup, finishing seventh overall. However, team USA would avenge this loss in the
2020 Summer Olympics
The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July.
Tokyo was selected as the host city during the ...
, defeating France 87–82 in the final to capture the team's fourth straight gold medal and 16th overall.
History
1936–1968
The US men were dominant from the first Olympic tournament to hold basketball, held in Berlin in
1936, going 5–0 to win the gold, and joined by continental neighbors Canada and Mexico on the medal platform. Through the next six tournaments, the United States went undefeated, collecting gold while not losing a single contest in the games held in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
,
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
,
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
,
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, and
Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
. Participation in these tournaments were limited to amateurs, but the US teams during this period featured players who would later go on to become superstars in professional basketball, including
all-time greats Bill Russell
William Felton Russell (February 12, 1934 – July 31, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who played as a center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. A five-time NBA Most Va ...
,
Oscar Robertson
Oscar Palmer Robertson (born November 24, 1938), nicknamed "the Big O", is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Robertson playe ...
,
Jerry West
Jerome Alan West (born May 28, 1938) is an American basketball executive and former player. He played professionally for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His nicknames included "Mr. Clutch", for his ability ...
, and
Jerry Lucas
Jerry Ray Lucas (born March 30, 1940) is an American former basketball player. He was a nationally awarded high school player, national college star at Ohio State, and 1960 gold medal Olympian and international player before later starring as a p ...
; the latter three competed on the 1960 Rome team often credited as the best U.S. roster until the formation of the 1992 Dream Team.
Alex Groza and
Ralph Beard
Ralph Milton Beard Jr. (December 2, 1927 – November 29, 2007) was an American collegiate and professional basketball player.
He won two NCAA national Basketball, basketball championships at the University of Kentucky and played two years in t ...
, both briefly NBA stars, made the 1948 squad as
Kentucky Wildcats
The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30,473 ...
, with 3-time
Oklahoma State
Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...
All-American and 6-time AAU All-American, and Hall of Famer
Bob Kurland
Robert Albert Kurland (December 23, 1924 – September 29, 2013) was a American basketball center, who played for the two-time NCAA champion Oklahoma A&M Aggies (now Oklahoma State Cowboys) basketball team. He led the U.S. basketball team to go ...
leading the way. The 1952 team included big man
Clyde Lovellette
Clyde Edward Lovellette ( ; September 7, 1929 – March 9, 2016) was an American professional basketball player. Lovellette was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1988. He was the first basketball player in history to ...
of the University of Kansas, a future Hall of Famer and NBA star. Kurland once again led the team to victory.
The 1956 team was led by
San Francisco Dons
The San Francisco Dons is the nickname of the athletic teams at the University of San Francisco (USF). The Dons compete in NCAA Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as members of the West Coast Conference (WCC), of ...
teammates Bill Russell and
K. C. Jones
K. C. Jones (May 25, 1932 – December 25, 2020) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He is best known for his association with the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA), with whom he won 11 of his 12 ...
, and defeated its opponents by an unsurpassed average margin of 53.5 points per game.
The 1960 team included nine future NBA players, including four consecutive NBA Rookie(s) of the Year; Robertson (1961 NBA Rookie of the Year), Lucas (1964 NBA Rookie of the Year),
Terry Dischinger
Terry Gilbert Dischinger (born November 21, 1940) is an American former basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Dischinger was a three-time NBA All-Star and the 1963 NBA Rookie of the Year, after averaging 28 points per gam ...
(1963 NBA Rookie of the Year), and
Walt Bellamy
Walter Jones Bellamy (July 24, 1939 – November 2, 2013) was an American professional basketball player. A four-time NBA All-Star, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
College career
Bellamy chose to play basket ...
(1962 NBA Rookie of the Year) but also Hall of Famer
Jerry West
Jerome Alan West (born May 28, 1938) is an American basketball executive and former player. He played professionally for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His nicknames included "Mr. Clutch", for his ability ...
and NBA All-Star(s),
Darrall Imhoff
Darrall Tucker Imhoff (October 11, 1938 – June 30, 2017) was an American professional basketball player. He spent 12 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), playing for six teams from 1960 to 1972. He made an NBA All-Star team, an ...
(1967 NBA All Star),
Bob Boozer
Robert Louis Boozer (April 26, 1937 – May 19, 2012) was an American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Boozer won a gold medal in the 1960 Summer Olympics and won an NBA Championship as a member of the ...
(1968 NBA All Star),
Adrian Smith
Adrian Frederick "H" Smith (born 27 February 1957) is an English guitarist best known as a member of heavy metal band Iron Maiden, for whom he also writes songs and performs backing vocals both live and in the studio.
Smith grew up in London ...
(1966 NBA All Star game MVP) and
Jay Arnette
Jay Hoyland Arnette (born December 19, 1938) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Texas Longhorns. Arnette played professionally for the Cincinnati Royals of the NBA from 1963–1965.
A 6'2" ...
. They defeated their opponents by an average margin of 42.4 points per game.
1972–1988
The 1972 Olympic men's basketball gold medal game, marking the first ever loss for the US in Olympic play, is arguably the most controversial in Olympic history. The United States rode their seven consecutive gold medals and 63–0 Olympic record to Munich for the
1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...
. The team won its first eight games in convincing fashion, setting up a final against the Soviet Union, holding a 6–0 advantage over the Soviets in Olympic play.
With three seconds left in the gold medal game, American forward
Doug Collins sank two free throws after being hit hard by a Soviet player to put the Americans up 50–49. Immediately following Collins' free throws, the Soviets inbounded the ball and failed to score. Soviet coaches claimed that they had requested a timeout before Collins' foul shots. The referees ordered the clock reset to three seconds and the game's final seconds replayed. The horn sounded as a length-of-the-court Soviet pass was being released from the inbounding player, the pass missed its mark, and the American players began celebrating.
Nevertheless, the final three seconds were replayed for a third time. This time, the Soviets'
Alexander Belov
Alexander Alexandrovich Belov, commonly known as Sasha Belov (November 9, 1951 – October 3, 1978), was a Soviet basketball player. During his playing career, he played at the center position. Belov is most remembered for scoring the game- ...
and the USA's
Kevin Joyce and
Jim Forbes went up for the pass, and Belov caught the long pass from Ivan Edeshko near the American basket. Belov then laid the ball in for the winning points as the buzzer sounded. The US players voted unanimously to refuse their silver medals, and at least one team member,
Kenny Davis, has directed in his will that his heirs are never to accept the medals, even posthumously.
[''By Frank Saraceno'']
Classic 1972 USA vs. USSR Basketball game.
// espn.go.com (August 6, 2004) It was later revealed that game officials might have been bribed by the
Communist party
A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...
.
[''Chris Elzey (American Studies Purdue University)']
«03 Seconds From Gold» (2002)
«Journal of Sports History» (vol 29, issue 3, page 518—522) // la84foundation.org
After the controversial loss in Munich, 1976 saw
Dean Smith
Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North Carolina at Chapel H ...
coach the US to a 7–0 record and its eighth Olympic gold medal
in Montreal. The success at this tournament pushed the USA's all-time Olympic record to an impressive 78–1.
The
Soviet invasion of Afghanistan prompted the United States and 66 other countries to
boycott
A boycott is an act of nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organization, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for moral, social, political, or environmental reasons. The purpose of a boycott is to inflict som ...
the
1980 Olympics in Moscow.
The 1980 U.S. team, which featured a number of future NBA players, was the youngest American national team ever assembled. This team featured:
Mark Aguirre
Mark Anthony Aguirre (born December 10, 1959) is an American former basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Aguirre was chosen as the first overall pick of the 1981 NBA draft by the Dallas Mavericks after playing thre ...
,
Rolando Blackman
Rolando Antonio Blackman (born February 26, 1959) is a Panamanian-American former professional basketball player. He was a four-time NBA All-Star who spent most of his career with the Dallas Mavericks.
Blackman was born in Panama City, Panama, ...
,
Sam Bowie
Samuel Paul Bowie (born March 17, 1961) is an American former professional basketball player. A national sensation in high school and outstanding collegian and Olympic team member, Bowie's professional promise was undermined by repeated injuries ...
,
Michael Brooks,
Bill Hanzlik,
Alton Lister
Alton Lavelle Lister (born October 1, 1958) is an American former professional basketball player. He is currently serving as an assistant coach for TNT Tropang Giga in Philippine Basketball Association.
Lister graduated from Woodrow Wilson High ...
,
Rodney McCray,
Isiah Thomas,
Darnell Valentine
Darnell Terrell Valentine (born February 3, 1959) is an American former professional basketball player who played ten seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Early life
Valentine was born in Chicago, Illinois and graduated from Wic ...
,
Danny Vranes
Daniel LaDrew Vranes (born October 29, 1958) is an American retired professional basketball player.
Vranes led Skyline High School, in Salt Lake City, to the state basketball championship in his senior year (1977). A 6'7" small forward from the ...
,
Buck Williams
Charles Linwood "Buck" Williams (born March 8, 1960) is an American former professional basketball player and former assistant coach for the Portland Trail Blazers. He was well known for his rebounding ability and trademark goggles.
Williams, ...
and
Al Wood
Martin Alphonzo Wood (born June 2, 1958) is an American former professional basketball player who played in six National Basketball Association (NBA) seasons for four teams: the Atlanta Hawks, San Diego Clippers, Seattle SuperSonics and Dallas M ...
.
Unable to compete in the Olympics due to the boycott, it instead participated in the "Gold Medal Series", a series of games against NBA all-star teams in various U.S. cities, recording a 5–1 record.
It was coached by
Dave Gavitt
David Roy Gavitt (October 26, 1937 – September 16, 2011) was an American college basketball coach and athletic director at Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island. He was also well known as the first commissioner of the Big East Conference ...
.
Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...
,
Patrick Ewing
Patrick Aloysius Ewing (born August 5, 1962) is a Jamaican-American basketball coach and former professional player who is the head coach of the Georgetown University men's team. He played most of his career as the starting center for the N ...
, and
Chris Mullin
Christopher Paul Mullin (born July 30, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player, executive and coach. He is a two-time Olympic Gold medalist and a two-time Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee (in 2010 as a memb ...
, future members of the 1992 Dream Team, made their Olympic debuts in 1984. Jordan led the team with 17.1 points per game, and
Bob Knight coached the team to an 8–0 record and another Olympic gold.
![Basketball at the 1988 Summer Olympics - URS vs](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/Basketball_at_the_1988_Summer_Olympics_-_URS_vs._USA.JPEG)
The 1988 U.S. team had a roster of collegians aged 20–23 that included future NBA all-stars
David Robinson
David Maurice Robinson (born August 6, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1989 to 2003, and minority owner of the Spurs. Nicknamed ...
,
Danny Manning
Daniel Ricardo Manning (born May 17, 1966) is an American college basketball coach and former professional player who is the Associate Head Mens Basketball Coach at the University of Louisville. Manning played high school basketball at Walter Hin ...
, and
Mitch Richmond
Mitchell James Richmond III (born June 30, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player. He played collegiately at Moberly Area Community College and Kansas State University. He was a six-time NBA All-Star, a five-time All-NBA Tea ...
. The team came up short, winning the bronze medal. The American team lost to the gold medal winner Soviet Union in the semifinals, but then regrouped and went on to beat Australia 78–49 in the bronze medal game.
Dan Majerle
Daniel Lewis Majerle (; born September 9, 1965), also known by the nickname "Thunder Dan", is an American former professional basketball player and former coach of the Grand Canyon Antelopes. He played 14 years in the National Basketball Associat ...
led the team in scoring, averaging 14.1 points per game. This was the last time the American Olympic Team consisted of amateur college players.
1992–2000
The decade started with a semifinal loss to Yugoslavia in the
1990 FIBA World Championship, followed by another semifinal defeat to Puerto Rico in the
1991 Pan American Games in Havana. The 1990 championship marked the last time that the U.S. was represented by college players at a major international tournament (World Championship & Olympics).
The decades-long use of "shamateurs" by the Soviet Union,
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
and other international teams prompted
FIBA
The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the (hence FIBA), in 1989 it dropped the word ''amateur'' from its nam ...
to modify its rules and allow
NBA players in the
1992 Olympics and beyond.
The team assembled by USA Basketball for the tournament in Barcelona in 1992 was one of the most illustrious collections of talent assembled in the history of international sport. Of the twelve players on the team, ten were named in 1996 among the
50 Greatest Players in NBA History, the
NBA's official list of the 50 greatest players of the league's first 50 years.
Magic Johnson and
Larry Bird
Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and executive in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Hick from French Lick" and "Larry Legend", Bird is widely regarded a ...
served as co-captains.
Because of this star line-up, the team's games usually featured opposing teams asking for pregame photos and autographs with their U.S. opponents. The USA team was so much better than the competition that head coach Chuck Daly did not call a single timeout during the tournament. The 1992 Dream Team won by an average of 43.8 points (second most, behind the 1956 US team) and the closest a team came to challenging the U.S. was Croatia, which was beaten by 32.
Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...
and
Scottie Pippen
Scotty Maurice Pippen Sr. (born September 25, 1965), usually spelled Scottie Pippen, is an American former professional basketball player. He played 17 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), winning six NBA championships with the ...
became the first players to win both
NBA championship
The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...
and Olympic gold medal in the same year, having played for the
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January ...
.
Regarding drug-testing the athletes, according to USA Basketball spokesman Craig Miller, "Since 1990, all of our teams have been tested in competition. I believe since around 1988 we have also been subject to out-of-competition testing. We have been 100 percent fully compliant with USADA and WADA."
![Ossela vs usa panamerican 1995](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Ossela_vs_usa_panamerican_1995.jpg)
The United States fielded another team composed of NBA players in the
1994 World Championship, held in
Toronto, Ontario
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
, Canada. This was an entirely new roster, as
USA Basketball
USA Basketball (USAB) is a non-profit organization and the governing body for basketball in the United States. The organization represents the United States in FIBA and the men's and women's national basketball teams in the United States Olympi ...
elected to showcase stars who were not present at the 1992 Olympics. Composed primarily of younger NBA players, the team lacked the widespread appeal of its predecessor but nevertheless continued its dominance. Those players were
Derrick Coleman
Derrick Demetrius Coleman (born June 21, 1967) is an American former professional basketball player. Coleman was born in Mobile, Alabama, but grew up and attended high school in Detroit, and attended college at Syracuse University. He was select ...
,
Joe Dumars,
Kevin Johnson,
Larry Johnson,
Shawn Kemp,
Dan Majerle
Daniel Lewis Majerle (; born September 9, 1965), also known by the nickname "Thunder Dan", is an American former professional basketball player and former coach of the Grand Canyon Antelopes. He played 14 years in the National Basketball Associat ...
,
Reggie Miller
Reginald Wayne Miller (born August 24, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player who List of NBA players who have spent their entire career with one franchise, played his entire 18-year National Basketball Association (NBA) ca ...
,
Alonzo Mourning,
Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), known commonly as "Shaq" ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. O'Neal is regarded as one of the greates ...
,
Mark Price
William Mark Price (born February 15, 1964) is an American former basketball player and coach. He was most recently the head coach of the Charlotte 49ers. As a player, he played for 12 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), from ...
,
Steve Smith Stephen, Steve, Stevie, or Steven Smith may refer to:
Academics
* Steve Smith (political scientist) (born 1952), British international relations theorist and senior university manager
* Stephen Smith (journalist) (born 1956), American journalist, ...
and
Dominique Wilkins
Jacques Dominique Wilkins (born January 12, 1960) is an American former professional basketball player who primarily played for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Wilkins was a nine-time NBA All-Star, a seven-time All ...
. Coached by
Don Nelson of the
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...
, this team easily captured the gold medal in tournament play. The team was referred to as the "Dream Team II".
![Shaq usa basketball 1996](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/Shaq_usa_basketball_1996.jpg)
The third team composed of NBA players participated in the
1996 Summer Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
held in
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
. The star quality of the team was impressive as it featured five members of the original Dream Team (Barkley, Malone, Pippen, Robinson, and Stockton), plus two other members of the NBA 50 Greatest Players list,
Hakeem Olajuwon and
Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), known commonly as "Shaq" ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. O'Neal is regarded as one of the greates ...
.
Lenny Wilkens
Leonard Randolph Wilkens (born October 28, 1937) is an American former basketball player and coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has been inducted three times into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, first in 1989 as ...
coached the team.
The Americans won another gold medal with an average margin of victory of 31.8 points per game. They captured the gold medal after defeating
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
95–69. With Atlanta being home to the
Hawks
Hawks are birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are widely distributed and are found on all continents except Antarctica.
* The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks and others. This subfamily ...
, these games were the first Olympics to take place in a city with an NBA team since the league started allowing its players to compete in the Olympics. The team was commonly referred to as the "Dream Team III".
The
1998 World Championship in
Athens, Greece
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
was different from the previous teams, as none of its players were current members of NBA teams. Because of
a labor dispute that led to a lockout, no active NBA players were permitted to compete in the tournament. The 12 NBA players picked before the lockout were
Tim Duncan
Timothy Theodore Duncan (born April 25, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "the Big Fundamental", he is widely regarded as the greatest power forward of all time and one of the greatest players in NBA histor ...
,
Tim Hardaway
Timothy Duane Hardaway Sr. (born September 1, 1966) is an American former professional basketball player. Hardaway played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Golden State Warriors, Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks, Denver Nuggets a ...
,
Vin Baker
Vincent Lamont Baker (born November 23, 1971) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He appeared in four consecutive All-Star Games. As of 2018, Baker serves as an assista ...
,
Gary Payton
Gary Dwayne Payton Sr. (born July 23, 1968) is an American former professional basketball player who played the point guard position. Widely considered one of the greatest point guards of all time, he is best known for his 13-year tenure with ...
,
Terrell Brandon
Thomas Terrell Brandon (born May 20, 1970) is an American former professional basketball player. He played for three teams during his 11-year career in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A two-time All-Star, Brandon was a key starter on ...
,
Kevin Garnett
Kevin Maurice Garnett ( ; born May 19, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played for 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed KG by his initials, and the "Big Ticket" for his emphatic dunki ...
,
Tom Gugliotta
Thomas James Gugliotta (born December 19, 1969) is an American former professional basketball player who played thirteen seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Early life
The youngest of seven children, Gugliotta has far Italian ...
,
Grant Hill,
Allan Houston,
Christian Laettner
Christian Donald Laettner (, ; born August 17, 1969) is an American former professional basketball player. His college career for the Duke Blue Devils is widely regarded as one of the best in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) hi ...
,
Glen Rice
Glen Anthony Rice Sr. (born May 28, 1967) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). As a small forward, Rice was a three-time NBA All-Star and made 1,559 three-point field goal ...
, and
Chris Webber
Mayce Edward Christopher Webber III (born March 1, 1973) is an American former professional basketball player. Drafted number one overall by the Orlando Magic, though arguably best known and remembered as the star forward for the Sacramento Ki ...
.
The replacement team was composed largely of players from American colleges, the minor-league
Continental Basketball Association, or European pro leagues. The unheralded roster captured a bronze medal, considered a solid achievement given its lack of top-notch talent. The team was nicknamed the "Dirty Dozen" for its work ethic and teamwork. Undrafted free agent
Brad Miller became a two-time
NBA All-Star
The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Originally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of ...
. Some of the other team members—including
Trajan Langdon
Trajan Shaka Langdon (born May 13, 1976) is an American basketball executive and former professional player. He is the current general manager of the New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A and shooting guard, he fi ...
,
Kiwane Garris,
David Wood and
Michael Hawkins—had brief spells in the NBA. All went on to have careers in Europe, with Langdon being named to the
Euroleague's
All-Decade Team for the 2000s.
During the late 1990s, international basketball began to gather attention as more and more foreign players became stars in the NBA. Therefore, the 2000 U.S. team had the enormous task of proving that American basketball could remain the best in the world. The new team that was assembled again featured
NBA players, but this time few of them were considered to be true superstars, as several elite players elected not to participate.
The U.S. team participated in the
2000 Olympics in
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, Australia and was coached by
Rudy Tomjanovich
Rudolph Tomjanovich Jr. (born November 24, 1948) is an American former professional basketball player and coach who is a consultant for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His professional playing career, whic ...
. It won its first two games by lopsided margins, but faced more difficult competition thereafter. In a preliminary game against
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
, the U.S. team won 85–76, marking the first time a team of professional American players failed to win by double digits. Two games later, in a 106–94 victory over
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
,
Vince Carter
Vincent Lamar Carter Jr. (born January 26, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player who serves as a basketball analyst for ESPN. He primarily played the shooting guard and small forward positions, but occasionally played Powe ...
pulled off one of the most famous dunks in basketball history, jumping over the
French center
Center or centre may refer to:
Mathematics
*Center (geometry), the middle of an object
* Center (algebra), used in various contexts
** Center (group theory)
** Center (ring theory)
* Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...
Frédéric Weis
Frédéric Weis (born 22 June 1977) is a French former professional basketball player.
Professional career
During his pro career, Weis played with Unicaja Málaga and Iurbentia Bilbao of the Spanish ACB League, PAOK Thessaloniki in the Greek ...
on his way to the basket. (The French media would dub Carter's feat '—"the dunk of death".)
A shock came in the semifinals when the United States defeated Lithuania by the close score of 85–83. Lithuanian star (and future NBA player, first with the
Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The Pacers were first esta ...
and later with the
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...
)
Šarūnas Jasikevičius
Šarūnas "Šaras" Jasikevičius (; born 5 March 1976) is a Lithuanian professional basketball coach and former player. He currently serves as a head coach for FC Barcelona of the Liga ACB and the EuroLeague. During his playing career, standing ...
failed to get a potential game-winning 3-point shot off in time.
The closeness of the semifinal game was so shocking that
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
took the unusual step of showing the gold medal game live rather than on
tape delay. (The game started around 2 p.m. Sydney time on Sunday, October 1, which is late Saturday evening in the USA. NBC originally planned to show the game almost 24 hours later during its Sunday
prime time
Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...
broadcast.) The USA won the gold medal against France in a close game, 85–75. Though the US went undefeated on its way to the gold medal, the team began to lose its aura of invincibility for the first time.
2002–2004
The 2002 team competed in the
World Championship
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. Coached by George Karl, the team finished a surprisingly disappointing sixth in the competition. During the tournament, Argentina defeated the US in the second preliminary round group stage, thus becoming the first team ever to defeat a USA team composed of NBA players. Yugoslavia knocked out the US in the quarterfinals, becoming the first team ever to defeat USA team of NBA players in knockout stage. Then Spain repeated the outcome in the 5th place playoff. To a greater degree than in 2000, a number of top NBA players declined to participate, forcing USA Basketball to resort to picking mostly second-tier players.
George Karl had a dispute with
Paul Pierce
Paul Anthony Pierce (born October 13, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player. He played 19 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), predominantly with the Boston Celtics. He was most recently an analyst on ESPN ...
, one of the few superstars on the team, which led to Karl benching Pierce, the team's leading scorer, in Team USA's final game. The group has been considered one of sport's greatest flops, as they failed to produce as previous teams had. The United States lost 3 games in the tournament to countries with current or future NBA stars, like Argentina (led by
Manu Ginóbili
Emanuel David Ginóbili Maccari (, , ; born 28 July 1977) is an Argentine former professional basketball player. Over a 23-year professional career, he became one of only two players (along with Bill Bradley) to have won a EuroLeague title, an ...
), Yugoslavia (led by
Peja Stojaković and
Vlade Divac
Vlade Divac ( sr-Cyrl, Владе Дивац, ; born February 3, 1968) is a Serbian professional basketball executive and former player who was most recently the vice president of basketball operations and general manager of the Sacramento Kings ...
) and Spain (led by
Pau Gasol
Pau Gasol Sáez (, ; born July 6, 1980) is a Spanish former professional basketball player. He was a six-time NBA All-Star and a four-time All-NBA team selection, twice on the second team and twice on the third team. Gasol won two NBA champion ...
).
Two NBA superstars,
Ray Allen
Walter Ray Allen Jr. (born July 20, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player. He played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a player in ...
and
Jason Kidd
Jason Frederick Kidd (born March 23, 1973) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Regarded as one of the greatest point guards ...
, accepted roles to play on the World Championship team, but were unable to play on that team due to injuries. Many other superstars, including
Kobe Bryant,
Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), known commonly as "Shaq" ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. O'Neal is regarded as one of the greates ...
, and
Kevin Garnett
Kevin Maurice Garnett ( ; born May 19, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played for 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed KG by his initials, and the "Big Ticket" for his emphatic dunki ...
, turned down invitations to play in that tournament.
![SCG - USA - USA training](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/SCG_-_USA_-_USA_training.jpg)
The close outcome of 2000 and the humiliating results of 2002 prompted a number of NBA superstars to agree to join the team for the
FIBA Americas Championship 2003
The 2003 Tournament of the Americas in basketball, later known as the FIBA Americas Championship and the FIBA AmeriCup (also known as Las Americas Tournament for Men, FIBA Americas Olympic Qualifying Tournament, or Panamerican Olympic Qualifying T ...
, dubbed as the Dream Team IV, which the squad was required to participate in to qualify for the
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
. The team easily cruised to a first-place finish, earning it a spot in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
, Greece, the following summer.
However, the dominant team that competed in 2003 could not be kept together. Nine of its 12 players elected not to participate in Athens. The new team consisted of some young NBA stars early in their careers, such as
Dwyane Wade,
LeBron James
LeBron Raymone James Sr. (; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is widely considered one of the greatest p ...
and
Carmelo Anthony
Carmelo Kyam Anthony (born May 29, 1984) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has been named an NBA All-Star ten times and an All-NBA Team ...
. Only
Richard Jefferson
Richard Allen Jefferson Jr. (born June 21, 1980) is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on ESPN. He played college basketball with the Arizona Wildcats. Jefferson was drafted in the first round of the 20 ...
,
Tim Duncan
Timothy Theodore Duncan (born April 25, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "the Big Fundamental", he is widely regarded as the greatest power forward of all time and one of the greatest players in NBA histor ...
and Allen Iverson were part of the 2003 2003 Tournament of the Americas, FIBA Americas San Juan gold medal team. The team was coached by Larry Brown (basketball), Larry Brown.
After struggles in several exhibition matches, the vulnerability of the 2004 team was confirmed when Puerto Rican National Basketball Team, Puerto Rico defeated them 92–73, from which they earned the nickname "Nightmare team" (as mock opposed to the Dream Team concept), in the first game of the 2004 Summer Olympics, Olympic tournament in Athens. The 19 point defeat was the most lopsided loss for the US in the history of international competition. After the game, Larry Brown had strong comments about his coaching performance: "I'm humiliated, not for the loss – I can always deal with wins and losses – but I'm disappointed because I had a job to do as a coach, to get us to understand how we're supposed to play as a team and act as a team, and I don't think we did that".
After winning close games against
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
and Australia, The USA fell to
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
, dropping to 2–2 in the Olympic tournament. Even after an 89–53 win over Angola, the Americans entered the knockout rounds in fourth place due to goal average, the lowest seed of their group. The Americans faced undefeated Spain in their quarterfinal game, winning 102–94.
However, the semifinal match saw the team defeated by Argentina national basketball team, Argentina 89–81, ending the United States' hold on the gold medal. The USA did rebound to capture the bronze medal by defeating Lithuania. Still, it marked only the third time that an American team failed to win gold (excluding the 1980 Moscow Olympics boycott), and the first time for an American team composed of NBA players.
2006–2016
Following the disappointments in 2002 and 2004, USA Basketball appointed Jerry Colangelo to be solely responsible for selecting the team. Colangelo made it clear that he would ask players for a three-year commitment—the
2006 FIBA World Championship and the Basketball at the 2008 Summer Olympics, 2008 Summer Olympics. In the 2006 Worlds, the team was eliminated by Greece in the semifinal, losing the game 101–95. The head coach was Duke Blue Devils men's basketball, Duke University's
Mike Krzyzewski
Michael William Krzyzewski ( ; born February 13, 1947), nicknamed "Coach K", is an American former college basketball coach. He served as the head coach at Duke University from 1980 to 2022, during which he led the Blue Devils to five nati ...
, with assistants Jim Boeheim, Mike D'Antoni, and Nate McMillan. While some prominent players, such as
Tim Duncan
Timothy Theodore Duncan (born April 25, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "the Big Fundamental", he is widely regarded as the greatest power forward of all time and one of the greatest players in NBA histor ...
and
Kevin Garnett
Kevin Maurice Garnett ( ; born May 19, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played for 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed KG by his initials, and the "Big Ticket" for his emphatic dunki ...
, stated that they did not plan to play for the team, superstars
Dwyane Wade,
Kobe Bryant and
LeBron James
LeBron Raymone James Sr. (; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is widely considered one of the greatest p ...
publicly announced their commitment for the 2006 Worlds and the ensuing 2008 Olympics. Wade, James and
Carmelo Anthony
Carmelo Kyam Anthony (born May 29, 1984) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has been named an NBA All-Star ten times and an All-NBA Team ...
were named captains of the 2006 USA World Championship Team.
![TeamUSA2008bball](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/TeamUSA2008bball.jpg)
The United States Team, dubbed Dream Team V or the Redeem Team, dominated Group B in pool play, defeating China national basketball team, China, Angola national basketball team, Angola,
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
, 2006 FIBA World Championship, world champion Spain national basketball team, Spain, and Germany national basketball team, Germany by an average of 32.2 points. After finishing first in their group, the USA earned the right to play the fourth-place finishers in Group A, Australia men's national basketball team, Australia. The United States soundly defeated Australia 116–85 in the quarterfinal. Next up for the Americans in the semifinals was the Basketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Men's basketball, 2004 Olympic gold medalist Argentina, led by
Manu Ginóbili
Emanuel David Ginóbili Maccari (, , ; born 28 July 1977) is an Argentine former professional basketball player. Over a 23-year professional career, he became one of only two players (along with Bill Bradley) to have won a EuroLeague title, an ...
– the team that had beaten them in the semifinals four years prior. However, Ginóbili was hobbled by an ankle injury and only played sparing minutes in the first half. Behind Carmelo Anthony's 21 points, the USA defeated Argentina 101–81 to reach the gold medal game.
On August 24, the United States defeated Spain 118–107 to capture the Olympic gold medal with the electrifying spark by team U.S.A. leading scorer Dwyane Wade adding 27 points with 4 3's and 100% shooting inside the line. The victory ended an eight-year drought at major international competitions (Olympics & World Championships) with the first win since Basketball at the 2000 Summer Olympics, 2000.
Due to winning gold at the 2008 Olympics, the USA automatically qualified for the World Championships. The USA had not won the FIBA World Championship since 1994 FIBA World Championship, 1994. It was initially believed that there would be only 2–3 spots available with most players returning from the 2008 Olympic team. However, by early July 2010, all ten invited players declined to participate, due to injury, free agency, rest, or personal commitments.
Due to the roster being filled with 12 new players and the lack of star power, the team was dubbed the "B Team". Also, the coaches were criticized for selecting too many guards and inexperienced players, and not enough tall players.
However, the team won all five of its preliminary games, four of those by double digits (the exception being the win against Brazil by 2 points). The success continued in the knockout stage with victories by 55, 10 and 15. In the 2010 FIBA World Championship Final, the USA beat host nation
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
by 17 points and won the gold medal. Tournament MVP Kevin Durant broke several Team USA scoring records (most points in a tournament-205, most points in a single game-38, and average points per game-22.8). In addition, Lamar Odom became the first player to win the NBA and FIBA World championships in the same year.
Team USA executive director Jerry Colangelo has said he's open to anyone from the 2010 team to play in future tournaments.
[
]
The US team clinched a berth in the Basketball at the 2012 Summer Olympics, 2012 Olympics in London by winning the 2010 World Championship. The Olympic team lost some players to injuries who might have made the team and appeared to be short on big men. Their roster featured five players returning from the 2008 Olympic team and five others from the 2010 World Championship team.
The US went undefeated but appeared vulnerable at times in winning five exhibition games. They finished the tournament with a perfect 8–0 record, defeating opponents by an average of 32 points while trailing in the fourth quarter only once. The Americans often played with a Small ball (basketball), small lineup that emphasized speed, quickness, and outside shooting. The team set an Olympic single-game record with 156 points scored against Nigeria national basketball team, Nigeria in the preliminary round. In a rematch of the 2008 finals, Team USA again narrowly defeated Spain national basketball team, Spain to capture the gold.
This was announced as the final Olympic Games for Kobe Bryant. By winning the gold medal, the USA automatically qualified for the 2014 FIBA World Cup.
The United States had automatically qualified for the World Cup by virtue of the gold medal won by their 2012 United States men's Olympic basketball team, 2012 Olympic team. The Americans were considered favorites to win the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup, World Cup. The roster was filled with two players returning from the 2012 Olympic team, three from the 2010 FIBA Championship Team, while seven other NBA players made their senior international debuts. The 2014 roster featured four players or larger, the most of any USA team since Mike Krzyzewski
Michael William Krzyzewski ( ; born February 13, 1947), nicknamed "Coach K", is an American former college basketball coach. He served as the head coach at Duke University from 1980 to 2022, during which he led the Blue Devils to five nati ...
began coaching the team in 2006. The team was also the youngest American team since 1992 United States men's Olympic basketball team, 1992 when NBA players were first allowed on the team; the average player was 24.08 years old, roughly a half-year younger than their 2010 team.
The team advanced to the knockout phase after starting the tournament 5–0 during the group stage. They went undefeated 9–0 in the tournament, winning by an average margin of 33.0 points. The United States was just the third country in World Cup history to repeat as champions. Combined with their 2010 World Championship along with gold by their 2008 and 2012 Olympic teams, they also became the first country in FIBA basketball history to win four consecutive major titles. The United States defeated Serbia national basketball team, Serbia in the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup Final, World Cup Final by 37 points and clinched a berth for the Basketball at the 2016 Summer Olympics, 2016 Summer Olympics.
Multiple withdrawals (largely triggered by a freak injury to Paul George in a pre-2014 World Cup scrimmage) left the 2016 United States men's Olympic basketball team, 2016 U.S. team with just two players with prior Olympic experience (Durant and Anthony). The Americans seemed vulnerable in the preliminary round, narrowly defeating Australia, Serbia, and France by a combined 16 points. However, the team gained momentum in the quarterfinal match against Argentina, winning 105–78. The U.S. team then defeated Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
in the semifinals setting up a rematch versus Serbia in the gold medal game. The Americans proved their superiority, easily defeating their rival by 30 points. The team averaged 100.9 points (with an average margin of victory at 22.5 points) a game with Anthony (he won a record third straight Olympic gold medal) and Durant as top scorers. Krzyzewski stepped down as the most decorated coach in USA Basketball history, coaching three Olympic gold medal teams and winning two FIBA World Cups.
Honors
Olympic Games
* Gold medalists (16): 1936, Basketball at the 1948 Summer Olympics, 1948, Basketball at the 1952 Summer Olympics, 1952, Basketball at the 1956 Summer Olympics, 1956, Basketball at the 1960 Summer Olympics, 1960, Basketball at the 1964 Summer Olympics, 1964, Basketball at the 1968 Summer Olympics, 1968, Basketball at the 1976 Summer Olympics#Men's Tournament, 1976, Basketball at the 1984 Summer Olympics#Men's Tournament, 1984, 1992
File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...
, 1996, 2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
, 2008, 2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
, 2016, 2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
* Silver medalists: Basketball at the 1972 Summer Olympics, 1972
* Bronze medalists: Basketball at the 1988 Summer Olympics#Men's Tournament, 1988, Basketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Men's tournament, 2004
FIBA World Cup
* Champions: 1954 FIBA World Championship, 1954, 1986 FIBA World Championship, 1986, 1994 FIBA World Championship, 1994, 2010 FIBA World Championship, 2010, 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup, 2014
* Runners-up: 1950 FIBA World Championship, 1950, 1959 FIBA World Championship, 1959, 1982 FIBA World Championship, 1982
* Third place: 1974 FIBA World Championship, 1974, 1990 FIBA World Championship, 1990, 1998 FIBA World Championship, 1998, 2006 FIBA World Championship, 2006
FIBA AmeriCup
* Champions: 1992 Tournament of the Americas, 1992, 1993 Tournament of the Americas, 1993, 1997 Tournament of the Americas, 1997, 1999 Tournament of the Americas, 1999, 2003 Tournament of the Americas, 2003, 2007 FIBA Americas Championship, 2007, 2017 FIBA AmeriCup, 2017
* Runners-up: 1989 Tournament of the Americas, 1989
* Third place: 2022 FIBA Americup, 2022
Other awards
Pan American Games
* Gold medalists: Basketball at the 1951 Pan American Games, 1951, Basketball at the 1955 Pan American Games, 1955, Basketball at the 1959 Pan American Games, 1959, Basketball at the 1963 Pan American Games, 1963, Basketball at the 1967 Pan American Games, 1967, Basketball at the 1975 Pan American Games, 1975, Basketball at the 1979 Pan American Games, 1979, Basketball at the 1983 Pan American Games, 1983
* Silver medalists:: Basketball at the 1987 Pan American Games, 1987, Basketball at the 1995 Pan American Games, 1995, Basketball at the 1999 Pan American Games, 1999
* Bronze medalists: Basketball at the 1991 Pan American Games, 1991, Basketball at the 2011 Pan American Games – Men's tournament, 2011, Basketball at the 2015 Pan American Games – Men's tournament, 2015, Basketball at the 2019 Pan American Games – Men's tournament, 2019
Goodwill Games
* Gold medalists: 1986 Goodwill Games, 1986, 1998 Goodwill Games, 1998, 2001 Goodwill Games, 2001
* Silver medalists: 1990 Goodwill Games, 1990
* Bronze medalists: 1994 Goodwill Games, 1994
World University Games
* Gold medalists (14): Basketball at the 1965 Summer Universiade, 1965, Basketball at the 1967 Summer Universiade, 1967, Basketball at the 1973 Summer Universiade, 1973, Basketball at the 1977 Summer Universiade, 1977, Basketball at the 1979 Summer Universiade, 1979, Basketball at the 1981 Summer Universiade, 1981, Basketball at the 1989 Summer Universiade, 1989, Basketball at the 1991 Summer Universiade, 1991, Basketball at the 1993 Summer Universiade, 1993, Basketball at the 1995 Summer Universiade, 1995, Basketball at the 1997 Summer Universiade, 1997, Basketball at the 1999 Summer Universiade, 1999, Basketball at the 2005 Summer Universiade, 2005, Basketball at the 2015 Summer Universiade – Men's tournament, 2015, Basketball at the 2019 Summer Universiade – Men's tournament, 2019
* Silver medalists: Basketball at the 1970 Summer Universiade, 1970, Basketball at the 1985 Summer Universiade, 1985, Basketball at the 1987 Summer Universiade, 1987, Basketball at the 2017 Summer Universiade – Men's tournament, 2017
* Bronze medalists: Basketball at the 1983 Summer Universiade, 1983, Basketball at the 2001 Summer Universiade, 2001, Basketball at the 2009 Summer Universiade – Men, 2009
Competitive record
Olympic Games
The U.S. team has achieved unparalleled success in the Olympic games. While always being at a disadvantage to the Eastern Bloc countries that had used their best and most experienced professional players listed as soldiers or workers in a profession to subvert the amateur rules, the U.S. team (typically composed of List of AAU men's basketball champions, AAU or College basketball, collegiate players) did surprisingly well, winning nine out of eleven Olympic tournaments they had entered before the introduction of NBA players. The U.S. is the only Western country that achieved success in a team sport during the Eastern Bloc dominance. Canada men's national ice hockey team, Canada's Ice hockey at the Olympic Games#Men, results in ice hockey and Western European football teams' Football at the Summer Olympics#Results, results in association football, soccer significantly deteriorated after the introduction of the Eastern Bloc countries and their quasi-professional players in the late 1940s and early 1950s. In 1992, the U.S. team was represented by the NBA players for the first time and defeated its opponents by an average of 44 points en route to the gold medal against Croatia. The Americans have continued to dominate the Olympic tournaments ever since, excluding underachieving performance at the Basketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Men's tournament, 2004 Summer Olympics.
FIBA World Cup
Prior to the introduction of the NBA players, the United States was usually represented by military, industrial or collegiate players. European and South American countries, meanwhile, were allowed to use their best players. In 1950 and 1954, AAU teams Denver Chevrolets (in 1950) and Peoria Caterpillars (1954) were the U.S. representatives,; in 1959, the United States sent an Air Force team; in 1963 and 1967, the team was composed of AAU, armed forces and college ranks; in 1970 and 1974 (with the 1974 team being the youngest and least experienced team in history), the U.S. fielded exclusively collegians; in 1978, an Athletes In Action (AIA) team was the American representative; in 1982, 1986, and 1990, the team was again made up of collegiate players. Starting with 1994 and with the exception of 1998, when the U.S. used players from the European leagues and college players, the team was made up of NBA players.
FIBA AmeriCup
Prior to the implementation of a new FIBA competition system in 2017, the U.S. team used different players depending on the circumstances. In 1992, 1999, 2003 and 2007, the Americans sent in NBA players as they needed to qualify for the Olympics. In 1989 and 2005, the U.S. also used the tournament for qualification purposes but sent in either college players (in 1989 NBA players weren't allowed) or NBA G League, NBA Development League, Continental Basketball Association, CBA and European leagues players (in 2005 the U.S. team didn't need to win gold in order to qualify for the World Championship). In 1993, 1997 and 2001, the U.S. team entered the tournament without any specific purpose and was represented by CBA players in 1993 and 1997, and by National Junior College Athletic Association, junior players in 2001. In 1980, 1984, 1988, 1995, 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2015, the American team didn't enter the tournament. In 2017, the U.S. participated for the first time in ten years with a squad of NBA G League players and American professionals playing in European leagues, winning the gold medal.
Team
Current roster
Roster for the fifth window of 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualification (Americas), 2023 FIBA World Cup qualifiers against Brazil men's national basketball team, Brazil and Colombia men's national basketball team, Colombia.
Medal leaders
Olympics
Until 1992, there were few players who got the opportunity to compete in multiple Olympics. Unlike their seasoned and veteran counterparts from Europe, U.S. players usually participated in a single Olympics (with Bob Kurland
Robert Albert Kurland (December 23, 1924 – September 29, 2013) was a American basketball center, who played for the two-time NCAA champion Oklahoma A&M Aggies (now Oklahoma State Cowboys) basketball team. He led the U.S. basketball team to go ...
, Bill Hougland, and Burdette Haldorson being lone exceptions) and after winning a medal turned pro. Consequently, prior to 1992, U.S. teams were assembled from scratch every four years. After the introduction of NBA players, U.S. teams became more cohesive, and players often chose to compete in more than one Olympic tournament.
World Cup
See also
*United States men's national under-19 basketball team
*United States men's national under-17 basketball team
*United States men's national 3x3 team
*United States women's national basketball team
*United States women's national under-19 basketball team
*United States women's national under-17 basketball team
*United States women's national 3x3 team
*USA Basketball
USA Basketball (USAB) is a non-profit organization and the governing body for basketball in the United States. The organization represents the United States in FIBA and the men's and women's national basketball teams in the United States Olympi ...
*Basketball in the United States
Notes
* In 2001, the U.S. was represented by National Junior College Athletic Association, NJCAA players. USA Basketball doesn't include their results in th
national team
s record.
References
External links
*
FIBA profile
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United States men's national basketball team,
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1934 establishments in the United States
Basketball teams established in 1934