If there is one team which the United States really seemed like it had to be afraid of coming into the 2016 Olympics, it was Spain. Instead of seeing the Spanish in the final though, the Stars and Stripes will have to take on their biggest foes in the semifinals on Friday in what could end up being a gripping match between two of the most star-studded teams in this tournament.
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Tournament Update
The Americans have officially come to life. Their first quarter against Argentina wasn't the strongest in the world, but there was never a point in that game in which there was any fear of ultimately losing as there was in matches against France, Serbia and Australia. In the second, the United States went on one of its patented scoring bursts and pulled away by scoring 31 points, and it coasted the rest of the way from there.
Even with all of the controversy from the close calls in the group stage, Coach K's gang is a perfect 6-0 in Rio, and there are just 80 minutes of basketball left for the ultimate goal of this version of the "Dream Team" to be fulfilled.
The Spanish finished with eight points out of a possible 10 in Group B, and their punishment for losing matches to Croatia and Brazil is having to face the USA in the second knockout stage instead of the prospective gold medal match.
Still, La Roja didn't make any mistakes in the quarterfinals against a French team which stood toe-to-toe with the United States for 40 full minutes. They won all four quarters and slowly and steadily ultimately put Les Bleus away with a resounding 92-67 victory.
Roster Analysis
The big thing with this Spain outfit is the fact that it has the bigs to hang with the Americans. Pau Gasol has had a fantastic tournament, and he's obviously quite familiar with playing against these players in the NBA. Nikola Mirotic is the prototypical big European shooter who can cause all sorts of hassles for the Americans, and both Ricky Rubio and Jose Calderon are fantastic with the ball in their hands.
It's becoming clear that the Americans are starting to trim their bench just a bit. Harrison Barnes played just six minutes and took three shots against Argentina, and DeMar DeRozan was hardly on the floor either. Most interesting is the fact that almost half that game was played without either DeAndre Jordan or DeMarcus Cousins on the floor.
Live Betting
If the United States is going to go small, Spain must go big and play like it. This is the only team which has really any chance of playing big boy ball with the Americans, and even at 36-years old, Pau Gasol will have to play tremendous minutes from start to finish to get the job done for Spain. Don't discount Mirotic either. He's not a great rebounder in the NBA for his size, but here in the international game, he can cause some real problems and can shoot over most who will be guarding him. If these two men have massive games, the United States will really have to watch out and could end up falling behind in live betting.
Quick Pick
We're most certainly taking the points here with Spain. Though we do think the Americans are ultimately going to win this match, this is the showcase we've all been waiting for, and it just doesn't feel like the "Dream Team" has a perfect identity yet.
Sure, if Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson amongst others start hitting big time shots from the outside, this game is all over with for sure. But if that isn't the case and the Spanish are clicking, you never know if this match could be the end of the "dream" for the USA.
Olympics Odds: United States 94, Spain 90
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