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2004 United States men's Olympic basketball team

Head coach	Larry Brown
2004 Summer Olympics
Scoring leader	Allen Iverson 13.8
Rebounding leader	Tim Duncan 9.1
Assists leader	Stephon Marbury 3.4
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The men's national basketball team of the United States competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. The team was led by future Basketball Hall of Fame head coach Larry Brown.

The Americans were favored to win the gold medal, after winning the previous three tournaments. However, the team won only bronze, while losing three games against its opponents, the most games ever lost by a U.S. men's Olympic basketball team. This was the second time that Team USA won the bronze medal, having also done so at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.

Team USA lost its opening game to Puerto Rico by 19 points, which stands as the largest margin of defeat for the U.S. in the Olympics. It ended their 24-game Olympic winning streak since 1992, when National Basketball Association (NBA) players were first allowed to compete. The team also lost a group stage game to Lithuania and the semi-final game to Argentina. In addition, the U.S. lost a friendly preparation game prior to the Olympics, against Italy, by a score of 95–78.

Roster

The following is the United States roster in the men's basketball tournament of the 2004 Summer Olympics.

United States men's national basketball team – 2004 Summer Olympics roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr. G 4 Allen Iverson (C) 29 – (1975-06-07)7 June 1975 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) Philadelphia 76ers G 5 Stephon Marbury 27 – (1977-02-20)20 February 1977 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) New York Knicks G 6 Dwyane Wade 22 – (1982-01-17)17 January 1982 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) Miami Heat F 7 Carlos Boozer 22 – (1981-11-20)20 November 1981 2.05 m (6 ft 9 in) Cleveland Cavaliers F 8 Carmelo Anthony 20 – (1984-05-29)29 May 1984 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Denver Nuggets F 9 LeBron James 19 – (1984-12-30)30 December 1984 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Cleveland Cavaliers C 10 Emeka Okafor 21 – (1982-09-28)28 September 1982 2.07 m (6 ft 9 in) UConn Huskies F 11 Shawn Marion 26 – (1978-05-07)7 May 1978 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) Phoenix Suns C 12 Amar'e Stoudemire 21 – (1982-11-16)16 November 1982 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) Phoenix Suns F 13 Tim Duncan (C) 28 – (1976-04-25)25 April 1976 2.10 m (6 ft 11 in) San Antonio Spurs F 14 Lamar Odom 24 – (1979-11-06)6 November 1979 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) Miami Heat G 15 Richard Jefferson 24 – (1980-06-21)21 June 1980 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) New Jersey Nets	Head coach Larry Brown Assistant coach(es) Gregg Popovich Roy Williams Oliver Purnell Legend (C) Team captain nat field describes country of last club before the tournament Age as of August 13, 2004

After the United States finished in sixth place in the 2002 FIBA World Championship, the Americans overhauled their roster for the 2003 FIBA Tournament of the Americas in Puerto Rico, where they needed to qualify for the 2004 Summer Olympics. The team cruised to a first-place finish at the Americas Championship, and earned a spot in Athens, Greece, the following summer. However, the only players from the 2003 squad to compete in the Olympics were Tim Duncan, Allen Iverson, and Richard Jefferson; the rest of the team opted out. Newcomers to the team included young players LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, and Emeka Okafor. The team featured just one All-NBA selection (Duncan) and two All-Stars (Duncan and Iverson) from the prior NBA season, which are both all-time lows for a U.S. Olympic team since NBA players were first allowed in 1992. Team USA was coached by Larry Brown, who was coming off a championship in the 2004 NBA Finals.

Summary

The United States struggled with its outside shooting, finishing the tournament ranked last in three point field goals made (5.5 per game) and 11th in percentage (31.4) out of 12 teams. They also struggled defensively.

The team's loss to Puerto Rico was just the third in U.S. Olympic men's basketball history. Their two previous losses were both to the Soviet Union (1972 and 1988), with six having been the largest margin of defeat.

Results

Game	Opponent	Result	Point diff	Round	Notes	Ref.
1	Puerto Rico	L 73–92	-19	Group Play	Team's third and biggest Olympic loss
2	Greece	W 77–71	+6	Group Play
3	Australia	W 89–79	+10	Group Play
4	Lithuania	L 90–94	-4	Group Play	Team's fourth Olympic loss
5	Angola	W 89–53	+36	Group Play
6	Spain	W 102–94	+8	Quarterfinals
7	Argentina	L 81–89	-8	Semifinals	Team's fifth Olympic loss
8	Lithuania	W 104–96	+8	Bronze Final	US wins bronze medal
Tournament totals: 5–3 record; 88 points per game; +4.6 average point differential

Statistical leaders

Records broken

• Stephon Marbury scored 31 points and hit a record six three-pointers against Spain.
• Team USA shot 12-of-22 (54.5 percent) 3-pointers in that same game.

References

1. 2004 Olympic Games: Tournament for Men 13 to 29 Aug. 2004 - Athens in Greece.
2. Maese, Rick (August 14, 2004). "Mystique Around US Team Fades". Orlando Sentinel. Daily Press. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
3. Cazeneuve, Brian (August 2, 2004). "MEDAL PICKS HERE'S THE OUTLOOK FOR ALL 301 EVENTS, AS WELL AS THE U.S. PROSPECTS AND A GALLERY OF INTERNATIONAL STARS". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved May 10, 2020. Two golds are expected, though the men are in more danger of being upset, having placed sixth at the 2002 worlds.
4. "How the 1992 Dream Team sparked global NBA fandom". ESPN.com. September 2, 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2010.
5. "'Dream team' beaten by Puerto Rico". CNN.com. August 16, 2004. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
6. Italia-Usa 95-78: gli azzurri nella storia del basket (in Italian).
7. Italians' 3-point shooting nets 45 points.
8. Italy stun US 'Dream Team'.
9. "Men's Basketball Team Roster – United States (USA)" (PDF). 2004 Athens. LA84 Foundation. April 9, 2014. p. 89.
10. ^ "ATHENS: SUMMER 2004 OLYMPICS; Sports, Disciplines". The New York Times. August 8, 2004. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
11. Howerton, Darryl (August 23, 2019). "Four-Point Play". Hoop. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
12. Feldman, Dan (July 26, 2019). "Team USA perilously low on star power". Pro Basketball Talk. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
13. Kram, Zach (August 19, 2019). "Is This the Worst Team USA in Modern History?". The Ringer. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
14. MacCallum, Jack (September 6, 2004). "Third World". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
15. Elliot, Helene (August 16, 2004). "U.S. Men's Basketball Suffers Stunning Defeat". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
16. ^ 2004 USA Men's Basketball Olympic Summary Archived 2010-01-03 at the Wayback Machine, USA Basketball, Retrieved April 19, 2014\.
17. Box score (8/15/04) Archived November 1, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, USA Basketball, Retrieved April 19, 2014.
18. Box score (8/17/04) Archived 2012-11-05 at the Wayback Machine, USA Basketball, Retrieved April 19, 2014
19. Box score (8/19/04) Archived 2012-11-05 at the Wayback Machine, USA Basketball, Retrieved April 19, 2014
20. Box score (8/21/04) Archived 2012-12-20 at the Wayback Machine, USA Basketball, Retrieved April 19, 2014.
21. Box score (8/23/04) Archived 2012-02-14 at the Wayback Machine, USA Basketball, Retrieved .April 19, 2014
22. Box score (8/26/04) Archived 2012-11-05 at the Wayback Machine, USA Basketball, Retrieved April 19, 2014.
23. Box score (8/28/04) Archived 2012-11-05 at the Wayback Machine, USA Basketball, Retrieved April 19, 2014.

External links

• USA Basketball, official site

v t e United States men's basketball squad – 2004 Summer Olympics – Bronze medal
4 Iverson 5 Marbury 6 Wade 7 Boozer 8 Anthony 9 James 10 Okafor 11 Marion 12 Stoudemire 13 Duncan 14 Odom 15 Jefferson Coach: Brown

• United States at the Olympic men's basketball tournament
• Basketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Men's tournament
• 2004–05 in American basketball