Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady revealed that he would pick the 1992 US men’s basketball team over the 2024 squad for multiple reasons. In a recent Instagram post, T-Mac pointed out the two qualities that the Dream Team has that give them an edge against this year’s "Avengers."
“ Dream Team because of their size. You’ve got David Robinson during his prime. You got Charles Barkley who is a bruiser big downlow. They would struggle at the end of the day when the game needs to slow down and you gotta throw the ball inside. I think the Dream Team’s inside presence is just unmatched with what they had at that time ,” McGrady stated .
Mike vs. LeBron
The matchup between Robinson, Barkley, and Patrick Ewing against the trio of Joel Embiid, Anthony Davis, and Bam Adebayo is a fun assessment to discuss when comparing both teams. Chuck’s role on the Dream Team was obviously huge, as he was the leading scorer (18.0) for them throughout the tournament. As for the Avengers Team, Davis and Adebayo’s defense was integral to their success, but the trio was more or less utilized as support on offense.
Aside from their interior presence, the seven-time All-Star also added that the Dream Team had prime Michael Jordan , which alone seals the spotlight of comparison between both teams.
“ And then on the perimeter, when you talk about perimeter guys, I mean, they had the greatest player that ever played the game in Michael Jordan. Seven games, I’m going with the Dream Team. Game 7 to win by 3 points ,” McGrady added.
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Different teams in different eras
McGrady obviously has the right to say which team he prefers, the Dream Team or the Avengers Team, but it’s also fair to argue that it’s difficult to compare two squads who competed in different eras.
The Jordan-led squad, who defeated their opponents by an average of 43.8 points, competed in the Olympics when the international scene brutally couldn’t keep up with them — unlike this year’s USA team, where they were really challenged by Serbia and France. Take it from Steve Kerr, who has witnessed how the global scene has developed over the past couple of decades.
"I think from the standpoint of career achievement, this team is probably as decorated as any since the '92 Dream Team. The difference is that in 1992, the world wasn't anywhere close to how it's good now in terms of basketball popularity and globalization of the game," Kerr said.
Despite how different both eras are though, it’s always fun to witness how the USA men’s basketball team performs at every Olympics just because it’s a rare opportunity to see the cream of the crop join forces. And for T-Mac, nothing will beat the squad filled with the players he grew up idolizing and patterning his game after.
Related: "I see now! You're trying to keep your distance" - Ahmad Rashad on how Michael Jordan was always step ahead of his rivals
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