Luka’s Corner

Team USA reached the gold medal game after holding off an injured Argentina team. The final score was 101-81. For Argentina, Andres Nocioni suffered from tendinitis in his right knee and Manu Ginobili was already weakened by a bum left ankle. Manu actually left the game in the second quarter after re-injuring that same ankle. That said, the Americans jumped on the Argentines in the first quarter (30-11) and held on for a twenty-point victory despite a furious Argentine run in the second period (29-19 in the quarter). Overall, the Americans took care of business and here my three points:

Look at that Free-Throw Shooting!

The main player for the Americans on the day was Carmelo Anthony. ‘Melo finished with a team-high 21 points on 13-13 shooting from the line (although he did shoot 3-14 from the field). He also added 4 rebounds and was very active on box-outs and defensive rotations. As I stated in The X-Factor, Anthony is the best shooter on the team and, against Argentina, his perfect shooting from the line helped tremendously in holding off the pesky South Americans.

This is comforting for the Americans because Anthony’s 13-13 reverses a disturbing trend. Often criticized for poor shooting, this game marked the first time in these Olympics that somebody on America shot over 10 times from the line and made all of their free-throws. Although I do not believe that the game against Spain will be close, having someone who can consistently hit their foul shots could help in winning the final.

Threes are Solid

Although the US shot only 32% from behind the arc overall, their three-point shooting was very solid in the first quarter. From behind the arc, USA shot 4-10 (including a very long two-pointer by Jason Kidd) in the first quarter and it was in the first period that Team USA actually built their game-deciding lead.

When Argentina played zone in the first or even when they played man, the US team moved the ball very well in the first period and both Chris Paul and Deron Williams hit their shots. While shooting 32% for the game is not at all pretty, it is enough for the Americans that they make their threes in one quarter. All they need is to hit three in a row in a three-minute stretch and that is enough to clinch the game. The US is so talented that its players will find another way to beat their opponent in the other three quarters.

Dwyane Wade…?

After getting out to a flying start in the first five games of the tournament, Wade has cooled down slightly in the past two games against Australia and Argentina. Committing questionable fouls and committing more turnovers, D-Wade has given us such high expectations that his recent performances are somewhat troubling. However, Wade has still scored and he is as active on the boards as ever. I am not that concerned about him because of his work in the other statistical categories.

My point is that Team USA needs Wade to beat Spain. If Kobe Bryant plays poorly, which has happened in the Olympics, then they need that extra firepower off the bench. The road to gold runs through the backcourt and Dwyane Wade is as important there as anyone on Team USA.