... for basketball. would they beat a healthy US team? like say for instance this were the game:

International Team (pick 12 of these):
Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol, Marc Gasol, Steve Nash, a healthy Yao Ming back for just this one game, Luis Scola, Andrew Bogut, Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, Andrea Bargnani, Danilo Gallinari, Linas Kleiza, Andrei Kirilenko, Serge Ibaka, Ricky Rubio, Ben Gordon


US Team (pick 12 of these):
LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Kobe Bryant, Derrick Rose, Kevin Durant, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Chris Bosh, Kevin Love, Blake Griffin, Tyson Chandler, Amare Stoudemire, Kevin Garnett, Andrew Bynum, Anthony Davis, Paul Pierce


US for gold. bring it on, world.

Are we playing FIBA rules?

USA, easy.

yes


although the whole "US doesn't play well with international rules" thing is a bit of a myth imo. especially with Durant on the team now. it makes it tougher in the half-court, but that's it. and our defense is suffocating no matter what.

If an international team can beat USA, is because it's a team. I mean, a group of players that know each other pretty well, that play with a personal style. Not just a group of NBA players ('cause come on, the best group of NBA players will always be a yank one). So, for example, I think Argentina or Spain have more chances to beat USA right now (I mean, with their actual team) than the kind of team you're putting here. So I guess I'm voting USA in this poll.

but that Spain team is a bunch of NBA players, at least the guys getting big minutes.

i also think the "team" argument is a bit of a myth. especially considering how often these guys have played together in the last 5-6 years and have known each other and been friends since AAU in middle school.

With a healthy Yao? The International team. Yao can't be guarded by Howard. You throw Dirk's inside out effect, the geniues of Nash, and the depth of the bigs and it would be awful tough for the US to win with its size challenged lineup. International is pretty weak on the wing but I think given Spain's ability without a lot of these assets to take it to the US and nearly win in Bejing would make the international team win.

You won't suffocate Yao. That's the one guy Howard could never do shit against (conversely Yao could shut him down). Give me Rick Carlysle to coach the international team and I might guarantee a victory.

<3 even though we disagree on the outcome (because i don't see how that Int team stops the US team from getting easy buckets in transition plus that US team has a murderous perimeter D), i don't really care to argue because i'm so excited to see someone else agree that Yao was a beast. somehow, people forget this because of all the injuries. i'm not necessarily saying Yao was/is greater than Howard or more valuable or whatever. but i honestly believe Yao was the more skilled player, the better offensive player, and the better player between the two when they played against each other (although the sample size for that last point was a bit small and i only saw a couple quarters of them matched up with my own eyes as it happened). in fact, for about 40 games during his best season (i can't remember off the top of my head which season it was), i remember thinking he was a top 2 or 3 MVP candidate. then he got hurt. if, and its a big IF, Yao had stayed healthy his whole career, i would have picked him over Howard personally in a hypothetical "start your franchise with..." question.

Watching whoever your team's center was play against Yao was the most frustrating thing in basketball.

Those are the best foreign players in the NBA, but are they actually the best international players? I don't follow basketball outside the NBA enough to know, but my understanding is that there are quality international players not in the NBA.

The answer is yes. The NBA has all of the best international players especially at the top end.

dejan bodiroga was an excellent player who never played in the nba. he'd have been no worse than luis scola.