Team USA fell to Germany in FIBA play Friday, 113-111. Some of the links call it shocking, but it’s really not. The US had some exploitable weaknesses and the Germans are a good team and exploited those weaknesses.
Germany shot 58 percent from the floor and killed the US in the paint. Grant Hill and Steve Kerr bet that speed could beat size and, in this case, the bet failed.
But it’s not entirely a bad bet.
It’s very reminiscent of how Jerry Colangelo and Mike Krzyzewski built earlier teams, but with a key difference: this team was put together in short order, where Coach K asked for a multi-year commitment from his players.