Episode 6: Drazen Petrovic and Basketball’S Cold War
Death at the Wing Episode 6: Drazen Petrovic and Basketball’s Cold War ⧫ ⧫ ⧫ Back in 1988, the USA Men’s Basketball team did something they almost never did... ARCHIVAL ANNOUNCER: The United States found themselves in a position in the last seven minutes of this game of having to score on almost every possession and they could not. After winning 9 of the last 10 Olympics they competed in, they lost. ARCHIVAL ANNOUNCER: But there’s no time, really, for even a miracle now. And the Soviets are already celebrating. The USA suddenly found itself wearing bronze. It did not go over well. And so, as the dust settled, they decided to do what America does best: get better through hard work, inch by inch, grinding it out… I’m kidding. No, we did the real American thing. ARCHIVAL ANNOUNCER: What may well be the best basketball team ever assembled… ...which is throwing lots of money at something to make even more money. And so, for the next Olympics, they formed a super squad of sorts. No more amateurs. It was time to bend the rules a little bit and bring in the pros. And, of course, bring in Reebok to sponsor it. ARCHIVAL ANNOUNCER: And now, the United States of America. This was the Dream Team. Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan. This wasn’t about winning gold. This was about buying the whole fucking gold mine. Shock and awe. 1 But in Barcelona in 1992, one player in all of the Olympics didn’t get the memo... or fax.
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