Team USA Squares Off

I caught a repeat of the Blue vs White Team USA scrimmage on FoxSports today. Many have called the game better than recent All star games, and they just might have a valid point there. On one squad you have J Kidd leading the troops into battle, and his favorite assist target; King James. On the other side you have the up and coming Deron Williams and his point man, Kobe Bryant. Then throw in sharpshooters like Michael Redd and Mike Miller and newcomers with loads of potential and talent like Kevin Durant.

Jason Kidd definitely shows his veteran leadership skills out there and he should by all indications continue to be the main point guard for Team USA into the Olympics. Kidd had some sweet alley oops and no look passes to Lebron for serious rim rattlers. Mike Miller showed a hot shooting hand and Kobe showed that he's still Kobe. One baller who I haven't seen much of up til now was Kevin Durant. And from what I saw it looks like he could definitely be the real deal in the NBA. Durant had a sweet dunk put back out of nowhere, while the veterans were just standing around.

The game wasn't without its inconsistencies. The commentators noted at one point that players were being too unselfish, as several passes sailed past players. You could also make a case that having some of these guys on the same team could hurt Team USA (Kobe, Lebron, Carmelo) because those 3 want to be the leader, but they can't all fill that role together. Overall, whoever makes the final cut out of these guys is going to make for one tough team to beat and for some exciting basketball to watch.

The game was won by Kobe Bryant, but Lebron took the last shot and missed. Now the question is if Lebron will allow Kobe to take that last shot while they are both on the court..?

Check out NBA.com's "Roster Math" where they examine the depth of the final Team USA roster. Team USA has 2 days of practice left.