Interesting story from the players on The Select Team. They were All Americans selected to scrimmage with the Dream Team. Most of the players were eventually drafted into the NBA.
The college players joked they were selected to get their asses kicked.
June 24, 1992
Chuck Daly was head coach. Krzyzewski the assistant coach.
The Select Team caught the Dream Team unprepared and over confident. The Select Team’s players won bragging rights and memories of a scrimmage victory that will last their entire lives.
Many of the Select Team’s players would have been on the Olympic team if the Pros weren’t allowed to play. The college players wanted to prove something. Show they could challenge the pros.
The documentary features interviews with players from both teams.
Krzyzewski says Chuck Daly understood the NBA players needed a wake up call. He didn’t step in as coach with time outs and strategy. He let the NBA guys showboat and lose team cohesion. Remind them anybody can beat The Dream Time on a given day. Losing stings.
Of course the scrimmage the next day was a massacre. Jordan, Bird, Magic and the rest took care of business and tore up the court.
Interesting moment in basketball history.
I admire Jordan, Barkley, and Magic acknowledge that they were out played in that first scrimmage.
Great story, I can’t wait to watch this. It does bear mentioning the select team was made up of mostly future hall of famers themselves, like Grant Hill Chris Webber and Penny Hardaway. Of course, they were only college players at this time.
I watched this a couple of days ago. Fascinating story. This is a must watch for sports fans.
Adding to the OP’s post, George Raveling, then USC head coach, coached the Select Team, assisted by Roy Williams, then coach at Kansas. They only had one or two practices before the scrimmages.
An interesting sidelight was the fact that Grant Hill and Bobby Hurley, members of the Select Team, played against their former Duke teammate, Christian Laettner, who was the lone collegiate player on the Dream Team.
Alan Houston shot for over 20 points the first scrimmage.
The 2nd scrimmage Jordan or one of the other guys told him he wouldn’t get his arms up for a shot. He didn’t make a shot.
There was so much talent that year. I think a college team (with these players) had a good chance for gold at the Olympics. Consider how good they were after only a couple practices.
But, me and nearly all the fans were thrilled to see the Dream Team.
IIRC didn’t Bird retire right after the Olympics? This was the only chance fans had to see Bird and Magic Johnson play together at the Olympics.
You are correct. The Olympics ended on August 9, 1992. Bird announced his retirement 9 days later. Bird averaged 8.4 points in 8 games in the Olympics.
Beating a select NBA team should become easier because the entire NBA game has become, “Heave it and hope you hit it.” In my opinion, what amounts to lazy basketball coupled with all the games they take off because of the NBA’s “brutal schedule” (that the old timers seemed to take in stride) translates into guys making way more money than they are earning. I’m not surprised that a skilled “select team” with great coaches beat them. In fact, I don’t consider it at all shocking.
Let’s see… the Dream Team had Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Charles Barkley, David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, John Stockton, Karl Malone, Chris Mullen, Clyde Drexler, and Christian Laettner. And you aren’t shocked that a team of collegiate stars (who had never played together) beat them in a scrimmage?
The NBA game in 1992 was one helluva lot different than today’s game.
I didn’t understand why there were only two scrimmages between the Dream Team and Select Team?
They had picked Assistant Coach Roy Williams to coach the Select Team. Handpicked a impressive college roster. Then only 2 scrimmages? Did the documentary get that right?
I remember Coach Williams said the Select team would use plays European teams favored. Letting the NBA men get ready for the European teams they had to play.
