Let me clarify some things.
There seems to be some confusion that TeamUSA’s lack of dominance at the Olympics is a reflection on the NBA. It’s not. It’s exclusively a reflection on the NBA’s inability to put togethera team that is suited for the Olympics. Don’t blame the players. Fire whoever put the team together. As I said in the last blog entry, this is the 2nd time (The World Championships being the first) where we suffered for lack of a3 point shooter. This should have been a no-brainer. The 3 point line is more high school than NBA. Put guys in there that can hit that shot and no other team has a chance.
2nd. I love the irony of how every problem TeamUSA has flies in the face of conventional NBA wisdom. When was the last time you heard teams criticized for not having shooters and only having a low post threat? It’s the exact opposite of everything we hear about the Mavs, and that cracks me up.
3rd. Anyone who thinks NBA players over there don’t care or aren’t trying is an idiot, plain and simple.
4th. Does anyone believe that the Olympics offer any marketing value to a sport? In fact, isn’t it the opposite? If a USA team does well in a sport at the Olympics and catches the hearts and minds of the US, has that ever carried over with any durability once the Olympics ended? The list is long of sports that thought momentum from the Olympics would lead to success and popularity, only to crash and burn
On the flipside, I haven’t noticed baseball suffering this year. PGA ratings were up in the face of the Olympics and the NFL continues to really, really struggle without a spot in the Olympics doesn’t it?
5th. None of this changes my mind that we shouldn’t have NBA players in international competition. As big a story as the TeamUSA’s problems, are the attendance problems and the ratings of the Olympics. This is a business event that is marketed to our patriotism. Congrats to NBC for what they have accomplished in their marketing and results, turning a profit on a billion dollar investment. A smack in the head to the NBA for providing our most valuable players, at risk of injury and full subsidy by our teams, to enable a competitor to sell to the same advertisers that could be buying from the NBA and our partners.