‘Redeem Team’ Redeemed: Team USA takes home gold

Kobe Bryant (left to right), LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony of the United States hold up their medals after defeating Spain in the gold medal game during Day 16 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games (Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

In a surprisingly close game with Spain, the “Redeem Team” won the gold and proved that the United States still dominates basketball. Despite talk of the world’s talent catching up with ours, Team USA beat most of its opponents convincingly, averaging a winning margin of over 30 points.

The US team was clearly more prepared for this year’s games than in 2004, when it failed to reach the gold medal game. These guys really wanted to win and their dedication was evident. Team USA also represented our country very well off the court. Players showed up on many occasions to support American athletes participating in other events. Not so the 2004 team, which was extremely standoffish and didn’t seem to understand what it means to represent your country.

Aside from being enthusiastic, this year’s Olympians looked like a team that had played together for years. Getting all-stars to submerge their egos is not an easy task, but this group of guys realized that a team is more important than any individual. Chris Paul said they played “like a college team,” emphasizing their cohesiveness.

The United States has always had the most talented basketball players in the world. We could probably have taken the gold with college players on the floor. But basketball is a game in which individual achievement does not usually determine the outcome. We learned this lesson the hard way four years ago, and it put Team USA back on top. I’d bet it will be for years to come. – Matan Cohen, Special to Bobby v. the World