Recently speaking on the SKWeek show by Tony Parker, Miami Heat legend Dwyane Wade had a fascinating take on International basketball. Speaking alongside a range of noted athletes including Theirry Henry, Dirk Nowitzki, and Pau Gasol, Wade revealed how he and Team USA were almost overconfident when they played at the 2004 Greece Olympics. Wade claimed that, unlike his own perception, International basketball was actually tougher than the NBA.
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The 41-year-old talked about how people in the USA, especially African Americans, tend to believe that “white boys” cannot be better than them. Wade claimed that the same opinion was shared by his then Team USA teammates, who were all taken in for a surprise and ended up returning with only the bronze medal from Athens.
Dwyane Wade was forced to reconsider perspective on International basketball after 2004 Olympics
Team USA lost a total of 3 games in Greece. They opened with a loss against Puerto Rico, which was their biggest and the third-ever loss in Olympic history.
They also lost in the group stages against Lithuania before losing to Argentina in the semifinals. Team USA had a poor outing overall and doubled their tally of Olympic losses in a matter of days.
Wade was one of several Team USA players who were taken by surprise. He claimed that despite his lifelong perception that international players and “white boys” were softer than him, his opinion changed after he got his “a** kicked”:
“When I grew up, from the community I am from, Los Angeles, you know, white boy, I am like, I got him. I don’t know him at all. It’s just a perception, that he can’t, he is not better than me, he cannot be better than me. You hear a lot of African-American speech from that space. But I think from a basketball perspective, there was a point, that their game is soft. Then I played international basketball, I got my a** kicked. Then I was like, ‘oh no, that’s skewed.’ The game is actually tougher. Actually, our game is a little bit softer. You wanna be honest, and so the experience of it, and going to play international basketball, for me, immediately changed everything that I have ever thought about international basketball.”
Wade almost was overconfident in his approach, and was firmly of the opinion that international basketball was “softer” than the NBA. He ended up concluding that it was the other way around, and an opinion he had held his entire life ended up changing.
Of course, it was hardly Dwyane’s fault. The perception was one that the entire African-American community seemed to hold, and is still a common belief.
Richard Jefferson detailed Team USA’s poor showing at the 2004 Olympics
Richard Jefferson had recently talked about how Team USA’s showing at the Olympics was no big surprise. He revealed that the roster had been selected after a plethora of top stars had said no.
This meant that the administration decided to select a relatively young and inexperienced team that was confident and brimming with confidence. With Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, and a range of other young stars, the 29-year-old Allen Iverson was handed the captaincy.
Jefferson revealed that he himself got promoted from a non-selection to a starter for Team USA. This meant that despite the obvious talent, the roster was simply stunned by the high intensity and physicality they had to contend with at the tournament.
