I remember being very excited. I had never experienced it before and so coming into the opening ceremonies
I was just like this is amazing because you have all the top athletes [in] the world [all] in one place and
I
Remember [it] just being a surreal experience
Playing the Olympics ooh yeah, I think
What was different was being in the Olympic Village?
You know because when you're in the cafeterias is this massive
cafeteria, and you look around you have
Some of the best in the world at what they do
So for me that that's that's even more special than being out in La and seeing celebrities walking around
Because it's athlete to athlete like I understand what they just put their [body] through to get here
And so there's so much mutual respect and admiration
when we lost in 2004
There was a heavy blow for us
This [is] a sport that we've dominated for years
and
I think you know there's there's a lot of beauty and the fact that we lost because it means that the game is growing
So much, and there's so many countries out there that are playing and playing at a high level
But at the same time I was like, okay alright. That's beautiful, and now we want it back
We want it back so 2008 was about that. It was about kind of reclaiming
You know we feel we started
I
Couldn't wait
To get after we couldn't wait [to] challenge for that gold Medal
You know we had a lot of energy, and you know we had lost
You know the previous time right? So for us. It was a chance shot at redemption
Wanted to show the world that we are the best basketball [playing] country in the world
We were playing against Spain, and you know spain it just very very tactically sound
Very fundamentally sound extremely intelligent you know they grew up playing together, so they all knew [each] other extremely well
so that was a shrimp that they had that we didn't because we just
Put the collection of guys together and tried to get to know each other over two years when they've been playing together since they were
10 or 11 years old
So we had to figure that challenge on
and you know pow and
[Mark] and Navarro, and these guys are incredible guy bahasa. There's phenomenal players at a is and
We had to learn them
Because [a] lot of them still played overseas, so we didn't know anything about them
So we had to watch them and prepare for them and study them
But we were we were looking forward to really excited
Fret for that team for our team at [that] time. It wasn't really about confidence is about execution
Execution Kim can we take Spain's strengths away?
At the end of the first quarter we felt pretty comfortable about that now the second quarter. It's about can they make an adjustment and
Encounter attack what we just did to him?
We made the [commitment] to ourselves and to our country to
[not] worry about a focus about how we played with our teams in the NBA
This is not that this is different team, so we have to play a different way
we have to play in whichever Manner individually is best suited [for] our team here and
So once we made that decision and that sacrifice to each other then playing with each other became very easy
my message to the guys was focus on the next quarter don't worry about the score I
Don't want you to think that
Spain is gonna roll [over] and we're gonna. Go away because you're not so what we have to do is focus on
What's working? You know counter what they're gonna come back with and
Focus on those x's and o's [I] don't get too excited about oh, my girl. You got one more half
We're gonna win the gold medal stop thinking about them. Just think about the play in front
There's so much energy in the arena flags and everything. I mean it just made the experience
awesome, because they're singing the [chain] face paint right and
and not only
Fans that travel to see you again
But also other athletes from Spain King and then watch and we're supporting their [closest] [opponent] country same thing for [ours]
and we had
Olympic swimmers of diabetes and Runners and
awkward you know basketball team players were there to support and
[feel] good to be a part of I
Think my job because [I'd] [been] there before I
Was the only one on the team that fight?
I had won championships, and so they look for me to really have that poise in those type of situations is not get rattled not
Get flushed or about it. It is what it is and so just to kind of keep that composure
[was] part of my job
When [he] cut it to two points like three minutes the gauze. I mean this is
This is so much fun
[yeah], I remember wanting the ball in those situations and
Once I made the shot it just felt felt good. Oh yeah, this is all right. [I] want to do it again, right?
[and]
It felt great
I mean
You know we're both very calm and [d-Wave] made a big play Deron Williams made another big play
And we were able to finish the game
We know when the buzzer went off we all just ran to each other
Because they've been a really long journey for us, and it was something that was very personal for us to put our country back on
Top you know, so we all ran of each other
It's a different
It's a [different] film playing for your country when we play in India you're playing for
A particular City [a] particular market and [you] plan for your country those lines go away
[we're] all together. We're all playing for USa basketball and
It carries a a great honor with that that's that that goes above and Beyond winning the NBA championship
I
Think the celebration afterwards after we won the gold medal when y'all went back to the hotel
We're all there together with our families
And we're all taking pictures with the gold medals and celebrating you come into the room. You look at players
That should be rivals and should not be hugging and celebrating each other, but we all are
Because it's bigger than ourselves. I mean
That that moment was very special
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