Sheridan 2012 Olympics Preview, Part III

That’s what we Americans have come to expect, right?

Well, I am here to tell you that is an overly simplistic view.

Spain is also led by a master tactician in Ruben Magnano, who played against the original Dream Team at the Tournament of the Americas in Portland, Ore. in 1992 and who defeated Team USA as coach of gold-medal winning Argentina in Athens in 2004.

Magnano and Krzyzewski have actually become friends despite the language barrier, as Magnano’s English and Krzyzewski’s Spanish are both poor. Magnano traveled to Durham, N.C. and took part in a clinic with Krzyzewski, the two men communicating with the assistance of a translator.

Krzyzyewski, who is not a big fan of Blatt, would tell you that Magnano is the best coach in the world outside of the U.S.

Spanish coach Sergio Scariolo did not show all his cards – but did tip his hand a bit – when the Americans defeated Spain by 22 points in their final friendly in Barcelona. In the first 5 minutes, Scariolo played Pau Gasol and Serge Ibaka together. Ibaka had four dunks before Coach K sicced Love on him.

For a 5-minute stretch later, Scariolo changed his defense on nearly every possession, going zone, then man, then zone, etc. But the Americans were knocking down 3s at nearly 60 percent that night, and it probably taught the world that this version of Team USA is not at all vulnerable against 40 minutes of zone as was the case in the past.

Anthony, James, Durant, Deron Williams, Love, Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook can all stroke it. There is very little chance they go through a 40-minute game without one of them getting hot from the new FIBA 3-point line, which has been moved back by a half-meter from its old WNBA length. (The trapezoidal lane is also a thing of the past, but the other peculiar FIBA rules remain in place – only coaches can call timeout, and the ball is live on the rim – a rule Commissioner David Stern wants to bring to the NBA.)

So buckle your seat belts, but buckle them loosely for the first week.

The games that are not to be missed are the finale of pool play against Argentina on Aug. 6, and the knockout games on Aug. 8, 10 and 12.

A lot can change between now and then. One or two injuries to Team USA could give the rest of the world added hope. One or two upsets in non-US games could drastically alter the makeup of the bracket for the crossover games. We might see Spain-US in the semifinals rather than the final.

In fact, I am going to make a prediction here that goes against the grain – as I promised some 2,300 words ago.

It will be Brazil playing Team USA in the gold medal game, and it will be a dogfight, just like the gold medal game in Beijing. And in the final 5 minutes, the Americans will pull away and win it. These American players are too experienced at this FIBA business – so much more mature than their previous Olympic incarnations – to do anything but succeed.

They will bring home the gold, but it will not be easy. Brazil will get the silver and Argentina is going to defeat Spain for the bronze.

Enjoy the games, folks, and despite my chalk prediction (here are the exact odds on just about everything you’d ever want to bet on regarding men’s basketball in London), expect the unexpected at some point during these Olympics.

Never fails to happen.

Chris Sheridan is publisher and editor-in-chief of SheridanHoops.com. He has covered every version of Team USA since 1996, covering them at the Olympics in Atlanta, Sydney, Athens and Beijing, as well as the World Championships in Indianapolis, Japan and Turkey. Follow him on Twitter.