Teams try to 'get their act together' and challenge USA at World Cup

RIO DE JANEIRO (Rio 2016 Olympic Games) - After the United States crashed out of the 2002 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Indianapolis and then lost three games before claiming a bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics in Greece, the Americans looked at themselves in the mirror.

They effectively said: "We need to get our act together."

Now look at them. With Jerry Colangelo having taken over the leadership of the senior national team program in 2005 and installed NCAA icon Mike Krzyzewski of Duke University as coach, the men have put together a decade of dominance that didn't seem possible 12 years ago. They have captured three Olympic golds (2008, 2012 and 2016), two world titles (2010 and 2014), a World Cup bronze (2006) and a FIBA Americas Championship crown (2007).

After the USA's 96-66 Gold Medal Game romp over Serbia in Rio de Janeiro, Colangelo said what he thought about the gap between his country and those that are chasing.

"I'm all for raising the bar for global basketball," Colangelo said to The Vertical. "The more interest in basketball on all levels, I'm for. I'm a lifer of the game. Basketball is the No.2 sport in the world. We just need to see these other countries get their acts together and become more competitive. I'm not going to be making any excuses.

"One of the officials said to me, 'You oughta play with four.' I said, 'No, maybe the other teams oughta get their act together and compete.' We've been helping in basketball around the world for 50 years. We've taught the world the game. We've taught their coaches. Look at the number of players in the NBA. Look at the number of international players in college today in the states. We're all for that. I want to see their level raised."

What will the competition do from now until the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 in China? It remains to be seen.

What did Colangelo do to get the USA back on track? He built a program because one had not existed before. He made Las Vegas the USA base and created a select team for younger players to be a part of the set-up.

When 2012 Olympic gold medal winners Anthony Davis, James Harden and LeBron James and 2010 and 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup winner Stephen Curry, the two-time NBA MVP, did not make themselves available this year, the door opened for others who had been in the select team, or had been members of the USA youth teams to play at the Olympics.

DeAndre Jordan, the Los Angeles Clippers center, played for the USA at the 2007 FIBA U19 World Championship. He did not play for the senior team until this year. Jordan made the Olympic squad and was arguably the USA's most important player with a dominating 9-point, 16-rebound and 4-block performance in their tough Semi-Final against Spain.

Jordan showed why having a program is vital for the USA

Colangelo may not, however, have been referring to Spain when he talked about the rest of the world becoming more competitive. Spain played the USA about as tough as they could in their Rio Semi-Final but lost, 82-76. They did so without their NBA All-Star center, Marc Gasol, who wasn't able to recover from injury in time to make the Olympic squad.

Sergio Scariolo, the Spain coach, got it right from a tactical standpoint against the USA. 

"We have given everything," the Italian said. "We have done a good job from behind, trying to confuse them a little and we have lowered their scoring average.

"But on the other hand, their incredible athleticism has lowered ours. In the rebounding, in the blocked shots (7-1), and the intimidation has made it difficult for us to score.

"We have to be proud of the effort of the players. We have given everything until the end, we haven't thrown in the towel. We have looked for a way to hurt them and at times, we were able to do that.

"But they have a lot of talent and they came here to play and defend (their title). They were very concentrated on the game, but nervous from an emotional standpoint from the first the moment."

The USA's physicality was a key factor against Spain

Colangelo's call for other countries to get their act together is a fair point, though. Lithuania, for example, regressed in Rio and did so almost inexplicably. Their NBA center Jonas Valanciunas never got it going. The team that finished second at EuroBasket 2015 lost by 50 points to Spain in Group B!

Australia had their act together, except for their Semi-Final against Serbia that robbed them of a chance to meet the Americans a second time. The USA won the first encounter against the Boomers by 10 points.

The Australians, as good as they were in seven of their eight Olympic games, must hold their hand up and say yes, we need to get our act together the next time we play Serbia in a Semi-Final. Serbia had a 35-14 lead at half-time and won, 87-61.

Shellshocked Australia had a nightmare Semi-Final against Serbia

Nigeria can certainly get their act together. For D'Tigers to lose NBA star Al-Farouq Aminu not long before the start of the Olympics over an insurance issue is difficult to understand. Also, why didn't Nigeria have NBA center Festus Ezeli in their lineup? Other than their showing against Argentina, the Nigerians revealed themselves to be a team with a lot of possibilities.

France need to get their act together. How could it go so wrong for Les Bleus, who lost to the USA by three points in Group A, and got blown out in the Quarter-Finals against Spain? They have the athleticism to compete with the USA, too. France should be able to push the Americans very hard. It was a missed opportunity.

Had Brazil not lost Anderson Varejao and Tiago Splitter to injuries, they likely would have advanced to at least the Quarter-Finals. Brazil, remember, nearly upset the USA at the 2010 FIBA Basketball World Cup. But why was NBA point guard Raulzinho Neto so ineffective?

If Colangelo's criticism stings, so be it. Everyone should remember that he was also very critical of the USA when he took over and did something about it. Maybe it will spur the competition on to greater things.

FIBA