Olympic Basketball Team Is Set

It was supposed to be a dream team, but putting it together had become a nightmare. Some of the biggest names in basketball were the ones leaving this summer’s U.S. men’s Olympic team. Karl Malone, Tracy McGrady, Jason Kidd, Mike Bibby and Jermaine O’Neal all dropped out. Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant never dropped in.

The reasons for their absence included injuries, security concerns and a sexual assault trial. The result was a roster with five gaping holes 19 days before the opening of the squad’s Olympic training camp at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville.

Those holes were filled Thursday with the addition of Lamar Odom and Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat, Carmelo Anthony of the Denver Nuggets, Carlos Boozer of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Emeka Okafor, drafted by the new Charlotte Bobcats after leading Connecticut to the NCAA championship this spring.

The five join Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs), Allen Iverson (Philadelphia 76ers), LeBron James (Cavaliers), Stephon Marbury (New York Knicks), Richard Jefferson (New Jersey Nets), and Shawn Marion and Amare Stoudemire (Phoenix Suns) under the leadership of Detroit Piston Coach Larry Brown.

At an average age of 23.6, it’s the youngest Olympic squad since the start of the Dream Team era in 1992, when the NBA’s superstars arrived. It’s also a small team, with Duncan the only seven-footer and the only true center. There’s also a dearth of guards with the majority of the roster made up of versatile swingmen.

“We finally have a team,” Brown said. “A lot of guys are missing out on a wonderful chance, but we are not going to put any emphasis on the players who are not on the team.

“We have a neat mix of kids who really want to be here. They give us some versatility. We are going to use the youth and athleticism that we have and not worry about the things we don’t have.”

Two things Brown has as a coach is an NCAA championship (with Kansas in 1988) and an NBA title (with the Detroit Pistons in the just-concluded season). No other coach can make that claim and now Brown will go for the triple crown by shooting for an Olympic gold medal. It won’t be easy in an era when many foreign rosters contain NBA stars of their own.

“We’ve got to go from being an all-star team to a real basketball team,” Brown said. “Competing for a gold medal is going to be a huge challenge because the competition has gotten better every year.”

Okafor is looking at the flip side of Brown’s accomplishment. He could have an NCAA championship and an Olympic gold medal before he sets foot on an NBA court for the first time.

“I think his selection is the neatest one,” Brown said. “Not taking anything away from anyone else, but I’m excited about him because, maybe, this will put a carrot in front of some kids, telling them that, if they stay in school, they can still win a spot on an Olympic team.”

As Brown spoke on a nationwide conference call Thursday, Anthony came on to speak next.

So how did Brown welcome one of his newest squad members? No hello. No congratulations. Simply: “I hope you’ve been working out.”

Anthony better be. In just five weeks, this group of Olympians must go from becoming a completed roster to becoming a complete team.

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Bound for Athens

The 12 players named to represent the U.S. in the Olympic Games:

(* competed in the 2003 Olympic qualifying tournament in San Juan, Puerto Rico)

*--* NO. NAME POS HGT WGT AGE NBA TEAM 4 ALLEN IVERSON* G 6-0 165 29 Philadelphia 76ers 5 STEPHON MARBURY G 6-2 205 27 New York Knicks 6 DWYANE WADE G 6-4 212 22 Miami Heat 7 CARLOS BOOZER F/C 6-9 258 22 Cleveland Cavaliers 8 CARMELO ANTHONY F 6-8 220 20 Denver Nuggets 9 LeBRON JAMES G 6-8 240 19 Cleveland Cavaliers 10 EMEKA OKAFOR F/C 6-10 252 21 Charlotte Bobcats 11 SHAWN MARION F 6-7 228 26 Phoenix Suns 12 AMARE STOUDEMIRE F 6-10 245 21 Phoenix Suns 13 TIM DUNCAN* C 7-0 260 28 San Antonio Spurs 14 LAMAR ODOM F 6-10 225 24 Miami Heat 15 RICHARD JEFFERSON* F 6-7 222 24 New Jersey Nets

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Head coach: Larry Brown (Detroit Pistons)

Assistant coaches: Gregg Popovich (San Antonio Spurs), Oliver Purnell (Clemson University), Roy Williams (University of North Carolina)