Having learned finally to share the ball, Kobe Bryant is poised to lead the United States' charge for Olympic basketball gold in Beijing. Appearing at his first Olympics, the NBA's Most Valuable Player could be the key to American hopes of regaining a title once regarded as their birthright. Bryant will also be looking to emulate Michael Jordan, arguably the sport's greatest player, by following his MVP title with an Olympic gold medal. Jordan won gold as a college player in 1984 and again with the fabled “Dream Team” of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, alongside Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. The Los Angeles Lakers guard, who turns 30 the day before next month's Olympic basketball final on Aug. 24, has long been burdened by comparisons with Jordan. Told by a furious Chicago Bulls coach there was no “I” in “team” a young Jordan shot back: “Well, there is in ‘win'.” Only when Jordan discovered the benefits of involving his teammates, however, did the Bulls win the first of their six NBA titles in 1991. Bryant has suffered from similar criticism during his career and was once labeled “uncoachable” by Lakers and former Bulls coach Phil Jackson. He has scored 81 points in a game, the second highest recorded in the NBA, but feuded with former teammate Shaquille O'Neal despite the pair propelling the Lakers to three championships in a row between 2000-02. The new-look Bryant is a different beast and he will have extra incentive to win gold in Beijing after the Lakers were beaten by the Boston Celtics in this year's NBA finals. A team ethic, embodied by the maturing Bryant, underpins the US squad, who will face strong competition, not least from 2004 gold medallists Argentina and world champions Spain. Bryant's ability to break down the defense off the dribble and solid shooting will be a huge plus for a US team who could manage only bronze at the 2006 world championships in Japan. Like Jordan, Bryant prides himself on his suffocating defense, an area likely to prove critical to the American team's gold medal chances in Beijing. Boasting Bryant and LeBron James, the NBA's Most Valuable Player and its leading scorer, the Americans are among the gold medal favorites along with Spain and Argentina. Spain won men's gold at the 2006 world championships behind inspired play from Bryant's Lakers teammate Pau Gasol, who will be key to Spanish ambitions in China. The sharp-shooting Argentines, who usurped the US as champions at the 2004 Athens Olympics, will also be a serious threat to American hopes of redemption. In the women's competition, American Becky Hammon's controversial defection to Russia not only triggered dismay but could give her adopted nation a vital edge in Beijing. The US has won 12 Olympic men's titles but its supremacy has waned in recent years. It finished with bronze four years ago and was third at the 2006 world championships. The arrogance of old has been replaced by humility, individualism by team chemistry, and head coach Mike Krzyzewski preaches respect to his players. “For too long we've been saying it's our game,” he told reporters on naming his 12-man squad. “It's really the world's game. You can't be arrogant and win.” The dirty dozen who bulldozed and trash-talked their way to gold at the 1996 Atlanta Games, in particular, did little for the image of American basketball. “Dream Team” labels, first bestowed on the US team featuring Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird which won gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, are not welcome. Basketball will be one of the hottest tickets at the Beijing Games, the host team having been given a huge boost by the return of towering Houston Rockets center Yao Ming after he broke a foot in an NBA game in February. – Reuters __
