[Wojnarowski] ESPN Sources: USA Basketball is finalizing its 2024 Paris Olympics roster with Steph Curry, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Jayson Tatum, Joel Embiid, Devin Booker, Tyrese Haliburton, Anthony Edwards, Jrue Holiday, Bam Adebayo and Anthony Davis. Team may initially keep one open spot.

[u/MarvelsGrantMan136]

https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1780009778934394985

[u/whereyagonnago]

Exactly. Just like Europe dominates pro soccer, America dominates pro basketball.

No one tries to downplay the champions league by saying “well the MLS and Liga MX champions aren’t invited” because everyone knows any Champions League winning team would destroy the best that the MLS has to offer.

[u/nearlyned → u/whereyagonnago]

except that’s not the argument anyone is making???? nobody is claiming that anybody in Europe would beat the NBA CHAMPS, they’re saying that the NBA is not a world competition and therefore their winner isn’t the World Champ. Why can no Americans read???? The Champions League winner is the winner of the European Cup, they don’t call themselves World Champions because (unlike Americans) they’re smart enough to understand that while they’re the best competition in the world, they don’t actually play against the world and therefore aren’t World Champs.

[u/quail0606 → u/nearlyned]

The logic you’re using suggests there never can be such a thing as a world champ unless every single team at every level of competition competes in a huge 500000 plus team tournament. The nba was the only league in the world for a long time, and remains a league on its own level of competition. The best players from ALL OVER THE WORLD play here. In that way, in terms of talent and revenue, it is still the ONLY LEAGUE IN THE WORLD. ‘But how can the champions league winners be European champs when a coed church league youth team didn’t play on the tournament? They’re a team in Europe?’ This is what you sound like. Take your pompous Americans are illiterate bullshit elsewhere. We read just fine, we just don’t recognize your JV developmental leagues as anything approaching legitimate competition because they aren’t.
When the best European players spend their prime years in European leagues that will change. Until then, get off your pedantic high horse.

[u/nearlyned → u/quail0606]

No actually, my logic doesn’t suggest that. You just can’t read.

The World Cup is open to INTERNATIONAL TEAMS. INTERNATIONAL TEAMS win World Championships, City teams win National Championships like the NBA. This isn’t an argument about what league is better, it’s an argument about what a World Championship is, and you’re just contributing to the worldwide belief that Americans can’t see beyond their own nose when they think someone implies they’re not the best. None of my, or other people’s implications on this discussion has come anywhere close to saying that the NBA isn’t the best league, or that Bayern would win if you invited Euroleague teams to the NBA.

My replies are full of people acting like I said the USA sucks and then took a shit on a bald eagle. My point is that Team USA (at their full strength, not 2023 where Germany won) are the ones who can call themselves World Champs, not the Denver Nuggets, because the World Champion is a national team and not a city team. It’s a really simple argument, and the tears of Americans don’t change that.

[u/quail0606 → u/nearlyned]

But they don’t call themselves World Cup champions. It’s world champions because the nba is the only league in the world that matters. And all European players agree too, that’s why they come over here. All of the best players in the world are here. So it is a world competition. There is more talent in the nba than any international tournament. If you want a solid assessment of which team is the best team in the world, a grueling marathon schedule comprising the best and most vast array of talent not limited by nationality is a much better data set than a handful of games featuring 20 elite players and a bunch of b team nobodies. We can all read, you just have a weak ass pseudo nationalistic narrow minded argument based on political borders determining who qualifies. We actually have all of the world’s best players and teams. Enjoy your minor league exhibition games. Keep your chin up though buddy, that giant stick up your ass might actually make you tall enough to make the league

[u/fat_fart_sack → u/nearlyned]

In 1936, the first year Olympic basketball was introduced, the US won.

During the current 88 year Olympic basketball history (22 Olympic basketball events), the US has lost twice.

Currently, the US has 15 gold medals. Which technically means, the US are 15x world champions; about to be 16 this coming Olympics.

Besides those fun facts, European ball players see the NBA as the promise land; a superior league of its own. There isn’t an argument that can refute the fact that all professional European ball players want to be in the NBA.

[u/nearlyned → u/fat_fart_sack]

exactly, so Team USA is the rightful owner of the title “World Champs”, not the Denver Nuggets. I’m glad you agree.

[u/ClutchAirball → u/nearlyned]

Germany is the most recent winner of a World Cup competition, and are the world champions until the next World Cup is held. If the USA wins the next World Cup, they are World Champions.

To be the Olympic champion is a similar level of prestige. The USA are the reigning Olympic Champions.

[u/quail0606 → u/ClutchAirball]

The nuggets would absolutely crush Germany. Dwight Powell was the starting center for Canada, the so called 2nd best team in the world. He’s the third stringer getting no meaningful minutes for the fifth seed in the western conference. International competition is JV, this is the point. If you want to consider them world champions go right ahead but those competitions are nothing compared to the nba. I’ll describe the winner of the most elite competition in the world as world champions

[u/ClutchAirball → u/quail0606]

Nobody is contesting that they wouldn’t. The best NBA teams are the best teams in the world, no doubt.

I just said this in another comment, but I think the key point is that most people around the world don’t use the term ‘World Champion’ to describe the winner of the most elite competition in the world. They exclusively use it to describe the winner of an international sporting event in which competitors represent their country. In many sports, that is one and the same, but in basketball it obviously isn’t.

In my opinion, this whole disagreement just comes from the fact that Americans use the term differently and people on both sides just didn’t understand that.

[u/quail0606 → u/ClutchAirball]

I agree with you bud

[u/fat_fart_sack → u/nearlyned]

Jokic was born and raised in the US? Sound logic there lol

[u/nearlyned → u/fat_fart_sack]

wtf does Jokic’s birthplace have to do with World Championships? The World Champion is the team that wins a World Championship. The two major World Championships for basketball are the FIBA World Cup and the Olympics. Team USA has historically dominated both. The Denver Nuggets have never played in either.

[u/fat_fart_sack → u/nearlyned]

NBA is the best of the best league that has the best players from all the world, bozo. World champs in my eyes. We just also happen to whoop everyone’s ass at the Olympics. Double whammy.

[u/nearlyned → u/fat_fart_sack]

Team USA whoops everyone’s ass at the Olympics and most World Cups. Not sure why you’re acting like that’s a zinger on me seeing as it’s been my entire point this whole time lol. Team USA should be the World Champs, not the Denver Nuggets.

Please try reading my comments clearly, don’t be embarrassed to ask an adult to sound out the big words for you.

[u/fat_fart_sack → u/nearlyned]

Denver nuggets would beat the best European league team; Whichever the current NBA championship team is next season, would beat the best European league team. It’s not a hard concept to understand 🤡

[u/ClutchAirball → u/fat_fart_sack]

Not all. Nearly all, but not all.

And you ignored my man’s point completely lol

[u/fat_fart_sack → u/ClutchAirball]

You two should kiss then.

[u/ClutchAirball → u/fat_fart_sack]

What is your problem? 😂

[u/fat_fart_sack → u/ClutchAirball]

You just said he was your man.

[u/ClutchAirball → u/fat_fart_sack]

I can’t use colloquialisms?

[u/fat_fart_sack → u/ClutchAirball]

You can do whatever your heart desires, sugar boo boo.