THE SPORT COUNT

As the world continues to analyse Team USA’s victory in the 2008 Games, a quote from the NY Daily News caught our eye. The world’s least entertaining coach, Larry Brown, is at it again, and this time he offers some interesting excuses for his cock up of the USA coaching spot four long years ago.

“We had guys that committed (for 2004) and then all of a sudden 9/11 happened, and then there were injuries.”

Okay, first I’d say it’s pretty disrespectful to say put the words ‘9/11′ and ‘injuries’ in the same sentence, with the loose implication that they’re somehow related (for the record, Kevin Garnett is not a fireman). Additionally, it’s just a lazy and stupid excuse.

Here’s a reason that you won bronze, Larry: you insisted on starting Stephon Marbury, Allen Iverson, Richard Jefferson, Lamar Odom and Tim Duncan. Sure, few would argue with the credentials of Duncan and Iverson, particularly in 2004, but starting Duncan as an international C, and Iverson — whose game is based on penetration — in the international game is stupid, and you know it.

Ego is Larry Brown’s problem, and his hatred of young players is an even bigger one. There was not a team in the world, in 2004, that would not have started LeBron James, international or otherwise. Likewise Wade. Amaré Stoudemire was also on the team, as was ‘Melo, so Brown was hardly working with dregs.

So it turns out it was you, Larry — not Osama — who was in fact responsible for the bronze medal. Osama, however, was responsible for Tim Donaghy and the famous Robert Horry foul on Nash. Al Qaeda are enormous Spurs fans.

Posted by: James