The Summer of 1992 was a great Summer for a pre-adolescent boy. Kathy Ireland was on the cover of Sports Illustrated. The Minnesota Twins were the defending champions. And most importantly, the greatest basketball players in the history of the world were teaming up to destroy the rest of the world.
For me, the "Dream Team" was one of my favorite things to happen in sports, ever. Just telling me Larry Bird was going to be involved would have sold me, but adding David Robinson and John Stockton to the mix while giving me a reason to root for the uber talented players that normally broke my heart was more than I ever could have imagined. I begged my mom for triple cheeseburger meals from McDonalds because they came with the commemorative Dream Team soda cups. I collected Coca Cola cans so I could trade them in for the Olympic mix tape that included the Fresh Prince's homage to the team. You might say I was a little obsessed.
So when Kobe Bryant, a person I loathe, recently said the newest incarnation of the USA Men's National team could beat the team from 1992, I should have been irate. Instead, I agreed.
Most people think I'm crazy. Michael Jordan, for one. Another guy was President Obama. And, of course, Charles Barkley weighed in with his belief that only three players from the current team (Kobe, LeBron, and Kevin Durant) would even have been selected to the team in 1992.
Those guys are wrong. Here are the arguments for why the Dream Team would destroy the '12 team and why they're garbage: