The USA Men’s Basketball Team for the 2004 Athens Olympics was a constellation of stars. However, they suffered three humiliating losses in Greece, the only instance in Olympic history when Team USA lost three games in a single competition. The young and talented trio of Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, and LeBron James finished with a bronze medal as even greats like Tim Duncan and Allen Iverson couldn’t lift the team past the Semis. In a conversation with Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony recalled the lessons he learned during the 2004 Olympics debacle.
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On his 7 PM in Brooklyn pod, Melo had D-Wade as his guest. The two soon started talking about Team USA’s chances in the Paris Olympics and how their team was humiliated in the 2004 Games. Anthony admitted that he was shocked when the team lost the Olympic opener to Puerto Rico by 19 points (the biggest Olympic loss ever for USA).
The then Denver Nuggets star couldn’t understand why the coaching staff was still overlooking the young talent on the team. But at that time, Melo didn’t know about the implications of putting on a USA jersey.
Meanwhile, Wade asked him what would the 40-year-old advise his son, Kiyan if the latter had been selected as a role player in the Olympics. Melo declared that he’d tell his son that making the Team USA roster comes with a lot of responsibilities. A young player has to wait his turn.
After making the Team USA roster, a youngster has to have the mindset to perform his role aptly. Trying to become the star of the team will only make things worse. Anthony confessed that back then he didn’t understand how Team USA is all about playing roles rather than harboring an ego.
Sulking over playing time and restricted roles hurt the team’s efficiency. The former Knicks superstar also said that he realized later that Team USA is not about having all the elite players on the same roster, but putting together a unit that works the best.
Anthony said that he would say to Kiyan,
“This s*** is hard af to get on this team. Don’t f- it up. Do what you have to do to be part of this team...It’s all about roles...It’s not a team of Avengers every time. It’s a team that they put together that fits the best. So sometimes it ain’t about putting the best scorer out there…it’s about who fits.”
Anthony then touched upon how both he and Wade had realized the value of identifying the correct role for the team later on. Melo was a superstar level player around the 2012 Olympics, but asked to come off the bench because he knew that is where he fits the best on the roster.
The decision turned up remarkable results in the end as he put up 16.3 points in just 17.8 minutes per game, including a US Olympic-high game of 37 points. These lessons are invaluable for up-and-coming hoopers like Kiyan Anthony, who may feel jaded when experienced players are given preferential treatment at the international stage.
