Dare to dream about the ultimate Team USA matchup
Point guards
It should be remembered that Magic Johnson sat out the 1991-92 NBA season and was therefore not at the top of his game. His alter-ego at this position was John Stockton.
Both Magic and Jason Kidd were slow and relatively defenseless, while Chris Paul and Deron Williams more than matched Stockton's speed and quickness. If Stockton was the best 3-point shooter of this group, Williams isn't far behind, and J-Kidd is underrated in this category.
The edge goes to the Beijing team in speed, depth and defense. Passing is just about even. Magic's overpowering strength offsets Kidd's and Williams' considerable muscle. Because of Stockton, the Barcelona team also gets the nod in the shooting department.
Advantage: Redeemers
Shooting guards
Michael Jordan is a tad better than Kobe Bryant in just about every category. Chris Mullin's defense was as bad as Michael Redd's, and his long-range bombing was nearly as accurate. Clyde Drexler was the quickest of these guys, but Dwyane Wade is the strongest.
The '92 wingmen get a slight edge in shooting (mainly because D-Wade is so erratic from behind the arc) and in individual defense. As a group, the '08 trio is somewhat quicker — mainly because Mullin was so lead-footed.
Advantage: Dreamers by a tiny margin.
Small forwards
Obviously, there's some cross-positioning here, but for argument's sake the contest is Larry Bird and Scottie Pippen versus LeBron James and Tayshaun Prince.
Prince shoots better than Pippen and is a better half-court scorer, but the latter is a superior defender.
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| Playing the current Team USA wouldn't be a laugher for the Dream Team, would it? (Andrew D. Bernstein / Getty Images) |
The decision comes down to Bird and LBJ. Give LeBron the nod for strength, quickness and passing (since Bird was really a shoot-first player). Neither was an above-average defensive presence, but James' speed and hops gives him the edge. Both are streak shooters, with Bird's streaks tending to come more often and last longer, and Bird had more rebounding responsibilities than James.
Advantage: Even.
Power forwards
Karl Malone and Charles Barkley were board-men extraordinaire, and as such operated at a higher level than Carlos Boozer and Carmelo Anthony. (Christian Laettner was the token amateur in 1992 and doesn't figure in this reckoning.)
Malone could play bullish defense in the post, but also tended to make far too many unnecessary and unsuccessful gambles. Still, he's the only one of this foursome who could play at least a modicum of defense.
Melo's perimeter shooting trumps the limited range of his opposite numbers.
Advantage: A big one for the Dreamers
Centers
Bad defense was the calling card of Patrick Ewing and Dwight Howard. Chris Bosh has some quickness here, but nobody can equal David Robinson's recognition and quickness to the ball from the weak-side.
By every other measure — rebounding, scoring, mid-range shooting — the Barcelona bigs were vastly superior.
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| The Redeem Team would have a hard time banging with Charles Barkley and the other '92 big men. (Andrew D. Bernstein / Getty Images) |
Advantage: Another significant one for the Dreamers
In the final game of the tournament, the Redeemers proved that they could command clutch situations — something that the Dreamers never had to do. Although it's unthinkable that Jordan and Bird wouldn't take over stretch runs.
Other points worth considering:
Given that all of the participants would be as they were then and are as they are now, the Dream Team would win an international-style game by 15 or more. A primary reason is that the trapezoid lane gives offensive rebounders a half-step advantage.
Playing with NBA rules, the Dream Team wins by 10 or more.
In a 7-game series, the Dreamers win in five.
Anyway, it's a glorious confrontation that hoop-o-philes can only dream about.
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