Carmelo Anthony explains the importance of having Kobe Bryant on Redeem Team
Carmelo Anthony is one of a few stars to experience both the highs and lows of USA Olympic basketball, He suffered through the team’s high-profile failures but also basked in the glory of a successful and legendary search for world salvation. Even though the majority of ardent NBA fans from that era are already familiar with the tale, Anthony is enlightening them on the impact that Los Angeles Lakers icon Kobe Bryant had on the Redeem Team.
According to ClutchPoints, the prolific scorer stated, “He was the last piece that we needed,” on 7 PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony & The Kid Mero. Without Kobe, we could have definitely won it, but it would have been more difficult since everyone’s duties would have likely been slightly different.Since the {2008 Olympics} were completely different, Kobe’s addition was the glue that held everyone together.
Team USA and Kobe Bryant needed each other to accomplish their goals
Team USA was stuffed with future Hall of Famers, so Anthony could be right about them winning regardless, but Bryant added a different aura that was particularly coveted during that time. To Anthony’s point, American basketball was under extreme pressure to win the Gold Medal after falling short in both the 2004 Summer Games and the 2006 FIBA World Championships.
Young guys like him, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, Chris Bosh and Dwight Howard were capable of getting the job done after some additional development and maturing, but a credible champion and lauded competitor like Bryant left no doubt about the squad’s path to the top of the podium. Furthermore, he had a chip on his shoulder.
Although the Black Mamba was spared the humiliation of the 2004 Games in Athens, Greece, he still wanted to taste gold from the Olympics. Four years prior, injuries kept him from competing for the United States, so Kobe Bryant was all fired up for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The Redeem Team easily completed its task, destroying the opposition in the process of going undefeated. Fans of the Lakers might feel good about the fact that Kobe Bryant probably made sure that the United States would once again be the undisputed champions of basketball.
Who will play that position in the 2024 Olympics is the current question.
