As hard as it is to put today’s loss behind them, but Team USA must do exactly that – tomorrow they play Argentina, the 2004 Olympic gold medal winner. As big of a disappointment it is to come away from the FIBA World Championship with something other than a gold, a fourth place finish would be even more demoralizing.
Dispatching the Argentinean team will be a difficult task. In addition to team leader and whirling dervish Manu Ginobili, the team has three other NBA players: the Bulls’ Andres Nocioni, the Pistons’ Carlos Delfino and the Spurs’ Fabrico Oberto. But keep an eye out for power forward Luis Scola, who leads the team in rebounds and is its second leading scorer.
The Argentina is coming off its own tough loss, having dropped a 75-74 heartbreaker to Spain. But they have a big incentive in the bronze medal game – they play the Americans. This is another opportunity for the Olympic champs to prove that they are better than Team USA.
This is why it’s crucial that Team USA win the bronze tomorrow. The program desperately needs to show some progress, and a fourth place finish just won’t cut it. A third place victory over the defending Olympic champs would be a nice consolation prize. It would prove to the world that Team USA recognizes those shortcomings exposed during the 2004 Olympics and is putting in the work to fix them.
Hell, bronze sort of looks like gold, doesn’t it?
