South Shore, Lake Tahoe, Nev.
– Shane Battier knows greatness when he sees it on the basketball court. He
shared a lockerroom with LeBron James, one of the NBA’s premier players, on the
way to earning the league title with the Miami Heat last month.
But, when it comes to
comparing James’ 2012 USA Olympic team with the Dream Team of 1992, Battier,
turned his favor to the team from 20 years ago.
“Every
last one of those guys is in the Hall of Fame; first bout Hall-of-Famers” said
Battier before he headed to a practice round at the American Century
Championship at Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course. “I don't think you'll ever see a
collection of talent that's as deep and as good as 1992.
“If
they played against each other it would be a heck of a game, but I’m partial to
the ’92 team. For my money, it’s the greatest team ever assembled.”
Battier
was only 14 in 1992, but he fell in love with watching Michael Jordan, Larry
Bird, Charles Barkley and David Robinson. Jordan, in particular, carried a
love-hate relationship in Battier’s basketball upbringing.
“I
always respected what Michael could do, but I couldn’t love him,” said Battier.
“I was all Detroit; “Bad Boys” all the way.”
Dream
Team member Charles Barkley was even more certain about the outcome.
“I think we win by 15 or 20
points. We’re too big for them,” said Barkley during a practice round in
Tahoe. “They’ve got a very small
team and I think we could wear Kobe and LeBron down by putting a bunch of bodies
on them. But, I think the main thing is that Patrick Ewing and David Robinson
would just punish them inside.”
Former NBA standout and current
announcer Steve Kerr agreed that old guard would win.
“You throw it in a simulator
and see what comes out, but I’m partial to the ’92 team,” said Kerr, a
five-time NBA champion who retired in 2010. He played with Jordan on three of
those championship teams in Chicago. “I think it’s the greatest team ever
assembled; the fire power on that team with Jordan, Pippen and Barkley. Pretty
tough to beat.”
“Only Kobe and LeBron; those
are the only two guys who would make our team,” concluded Barkley. “They are
two of the 10 greatest players ever in the game.”
By Craig Smith, former
director of media relations for the U.S. Golf Association.
2 comments:
8/12/12 -
A couple of nights ago, the NBC Olympics broadcast opened their show with a short, very cool, documentary on the 1992 Dream Team. And among other things Magic opined in a present-day interview (Life long Lakers fan here, BTW) was that the 92 Dream Team may have been the greatest basketball line-up ever assembled.
Asked about that possibility, Kareem Abdul Jabbar gave his opinion, and while Kareem conceded that the 1992 Team USA line-up was “very formidable and impressive” he went on to say that he felt that the 1972 NBA Western Conference All-Stars was by far the greatest assembly of American basketball talent ever to be placed on the same roster. He also said that - given an equal amount of preparation and time together, like that the “Dream Teams“ have had - the 1972 roster would have crushed any team they would have been presented with. After hearing Kareem’s opinion, I checked the roster he was referring to; he was absolutely freaking correct…The proverbial “whose guarding Jordan” argument wouldn’t even apply, as Wilt and Kareem would send anything coming down the paint to the rafters. The 1972 Western Conference All-Stars were as follows:
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Wilt Chamberlain
Gail Goodrich
Connie Hawkins
Elvin Hayes
Spencer Haywood
Bob Lanier
Bob Love
Oscar Robertson
Cazzie Russell
Paul Silas
Jimmy Walker
Jerry West
Sidney Wicks
If ever simulators such as the ones offered at sportsentertainmentspecialists.com would provide the chance of playing with these guys, I'd immediately grab that opportunity!
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