Ever since Michael Jordan and his deadly crew teamed up to form the Dream Team in 1992, they have been considered the best basketball team to ever assemble. But the Team USA competing in the ongoing Paris Olympics seems to have overtaken the legendary squad in many people’s eyes. With future Hall of Famers like LeBron, KD, and Steph on the roster, even GSW’s outspoken critic Draymond Green boldly picked the current roster over the 1992 juggernauts. However, media veteran Chris Broussard does not agree with his claim as he revealed Team USA’s key weakness that might cause them to fall short against the MJ and Co.

“This 2024 team are definitely drawing those comparisons to the Dream Team and quite frankly I’m taking the 2024 team seven days a week. I think the 2024 team beats the Dream Team five out of seven games.” With his statement, Draymond made his stance clear and left the internet in a frenzy. Discussing the comment, Chris Broussard revealed exactly why Green’s claim might not be very wise, saying, “One of the biggest advantages I think for the 92 team is that in 1992, American players were better at playing team basketball. They were better at playing five-man basketball.”

As great as the current Team USA players are individually, they are accustomed to playing a certain style because of their NBA experience. “They are used to playing one-man ball, which is iso or two-man ball high pick and roll, everybody spread the floor,” he said. We have seen this trait become a weakness for them in Paris as superstars like Joel Embiid and Jayson Tatum have struggled to find any rhythm playing away from the ball. Despite their individual greatness, they are yet to become the best collective unit.

Meanwhile, the Dream Team had this issue figured out from the get-go as Broussard remarked, “Every single player on that Dream Team knew how to play including Michael Jordan, knew how to play without the ball in his hands and be effective without the ball in his hands.”

Due to that era of playing more zone basketball and operating through triangular offenses in the NBA, the Dream Team had no problem adjusting to the FIBA-style play in Barcelona. They were so destructive together that just saying the word Barcelona still gives fans goosebumps. More importantly, the 1992 team had one of the best leaders and arguably the greatest point guard to run the show for them, Magic Johnson.

via Imago

“Magic Johnson was the premiere player of all time as far as bringing players together. So, you give him that much talent and I think he just gets the right pass to the right man at the right time in the right place,” Chris Broussard added on The Odd Couple Podcast. And while the current roster has LeBron James playing a similar role, he might be no match for Magic’s floor general s𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁s.

Teamwork and Cohesion are not the only problems for LeBron James and Team USA in 2024

Another reason why Broussard disagrees with Draymond Green is because of the way Team USA is constructed this year. Unlike the Dream Team which was stacked with dominant big men like Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Karl Malone, and Charles Barkley, the current roster has fallen way short in this department. “This team was so concerned in 2024 with inside play of guys that weren’t nearly as good as the ones I just mentioned, that’s why they put Joel Embiid on the team because they needed size,” Broussard claimed.

While Team USA has a ton of offensive firepower, they are equipped with only 3 big men, Joel Embiid, Anthony Davis, and Bam Adebayo. On top of that, Embiid has failed miserably on the international stage so far. He had only 4 points in his debut and was forced to sit out the entire game against South Sudan. Moreover, in the era of hand-checking, players like Embiid will have struggled against the Dream Team because he relied heavily on his free throws and 90’s basketball allowed more physicality and called fewer fouls.

With so many factors in favor of the Dream Team, Broussard made a claim of his own, “I think the 92 team because of their style of play, would, I think, it’d be a toss-up, I really do. I think they could play with this team. I even might take the 92 team because you got Jordan and Barkley in their prime.”

Obviously, apart from the multiple advantages, Dream Team also had MJ, who many consider the GOAT, and Charles Barkley, who surprisingly overtook Jordan as the best player of the Barcelona Olympics, averaging 18 points and over 4 rebounds. Meanwhile, the three greatest superstars on the current Team USA roster, LeBron, KD, and Steph are in the later stages of their careers and wouldn’t have been able to match the quickness of MJ and Chuck.

Who do you think would win between the Dream Team and the 2024 Team USA?

Before you go, do not forget to check out this crossover between BG12 and Georgia Bulldogs star Asia Avinger