Nearly two weeks have passed since the Paris Olympics concluded, but the excitement is still fresh in fans’ minds. Many are still busy reminiscing about the Olympic heroics and engaging in hypothetical debates. One such discussion reached Gil’s Arena, where fans asked Gilbert Arenas and his crew to pick their ultimate Team USA Starting Five from the 1992 Olympics to the present day.
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It was quite a thought-provoking question, and Gil was the first to name his 5. He started with Shaquille O’Neal at five, Kevin Durant and LeBron James at three and four. It was the 2-guard spot that left Arenas in a dilemma.
Picking between Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan is never an easy task. Going for Kobe, Gil said,
“If we want to keep it a buck, we can say, because Michael Jordan’s on the team, but did you see his Olympic performances? He wasn’t, like, let’s just say, he wasn’t the Michael Jordan we all keep talking about.”
Arenas proceeded to bring up MJ’s 1992 Olympics stats to justify his selection. “MJ averaged 15, five assists, two rebounds,” Arenas said, while further adding, “And what was his percentage? 45% from the field, 21% from three.”
On top of the stats, Gil also brought up the level of competition the Dream Team faced. He mentioned how there were just 3 NBA players that the 1992 Dream Team faced,
“There’s only three active NBA players. One player played one game. It was in January. He was an active player. Then it was Detlef Schrempf, who was the best player. He had the best NBA resume. Then it was Dragic, who had the best year going into the Olympics.”
After this, Arenas rounded out his 5 with Kobe at one, Carmelo Anthony at two, LeBron at three, KD at four, and Shaq at five. However, when Nick Young added MJ to his 5, Arenas went one step further in why MJ shouldn’t be on there.
“You’re not taking six-ring Michael Jordan. You— You dealing with 45% and 21% from the close 3-point line. I’m taking Charles Barkley before I goddamn take Michael Jordan. I’m taking Chris Mullin.”
Charles Barkley averaged 18 points and four rebounds at the 1992 Olympics, while 71% from the field. He also led Team USA in scoring. Picking Barkley is not a bad option at all. However, picking Chuck over MJ? That’s quite a bold take from Gilbert Arenas.
