With recent NBA champion LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony and so much more, anything was possible.
And boy, what a month it has been watching this team. And now they have accomplished what they have been working for months: capturing the elusive gold medal.
USA did just that in the gold medal game in a 2008-rematch against Spain again. However, things were a lot different for this year's team. They had Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka in, but they were without Ricky Rubio. However, it was still a tough contest as USA edged them out in a 107-100 victory.
USA was only leading by one point after the third quarter. However, towards the end of the game, that's when they turned it up and took over to get the victory. James showed off he was clutch, being the leader like he was for Miami in the Finals for USA in the final three minutes.
An amazing dunk and nail-biting three-pointer over Marc sealed the deal for USA getting the gold.
"We knew it wasn't going to be easy. We didn't want it easy," LeBron James said. "A lot of teams have won gold easy. We didn't want it that way. We're a competitive team, and we love when it gets tight. That's when our will and determination kind of shows. It was the same way in '08."
And it ended the same way as well...with a victory.
Kevin Durant led the squad with 30 points with James right behind with 19. James now joins Michael Jordan as the only players to win a championship, an MVP award, a Finals MVP award and an Olympic gold medal in the same year.
It was a special night for Kobe Bryant as well, with it likely being his final appearance in the Olympics. Bryant leaves with the gold, but there could be a chance in 2016 in Rio where he would be 38. However, the Black Mamba doubts it.
This team was special and it was great watching them.
And it was great winning, too.
Josh Dhani is the founder of FootBasket. You can read more about him at his website. Follow him on Twitter @joshdhani.
