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Longley sees another decade before Dream Team faces danger
SYDNEY, Sept 14 (AFP) - Expect at least another decade of Olympic basketball domination by the United States "Dream Team." Australian center Luc Longley, a three-time National Basketball Association champion with the Chicago Bulls, predicts it will take the world at least 10 years to create a rival to the American collection of NBA stars. "With a given set of conditions, some teams can compete right now," Longley said here Thursday. "As far as beating them or being in the same league, we're a decade away, maybe more." That timetable, leaving the US team nearly invulnerable until the 2012 Olympics, might have been hastened if not for political breakups in Eastern Europe, Longley said. "We would have been closer if Russia and Lithuania hadn't divided their resources and Croatia and Yugoslavia hadn't divided their resources," he said. Asked what nations he saw challenging US supremacy on the court, Longley replied, "I think Australia will be one of those countries. The Russians and Yugoslavians are pretty good." Longley and his Olympic teammates have not given up hope of an upset here at the Sydney Games. But they are realistic about the chances of ending the Dreamers' golden run. "People always ask if they can be beat," Longley said. "Realists would probably say not. From a competitor's standpoint, you have to go in there thinking they can be beat. "Maybe we are full of it. But you have to shoot for the stars or get stuck with the moon. That's our story and we're sticking to it." Aussie teammate Andrew Gaze, the Australian flag-bearer here, said it would take a near-miracle to topple the US team. "He's probably not far off the mark. Their athleticism, skill level, size and speed put them several leagues ahead," Longley said. "That's the thing about the Olympics. Minor miracles do happen. Underdogs get up and win, especially on home court. We have to believe they're beatable." But Longley stopped short of saying the US team was cocky or arrogant. "The right set of circumstances to beat them would involve creeping up on them and having them take a team for granted," Longley said. "I'm not going to set up the headline 'Longley says Americans are arrogant.' There, I said it." One reason for optimism in the Aussie camp is that eight of 12 players have some NBA experience. For Longley, time spent with the Bulls taught that even Michael Jordan has his bad days and puts on his pants one leg at a time. "One of the most important things about the experience is they see the NBA players are not immortal," Longley said. "They do have a strong hand, chinks in the armour. That's what I can pass on to guys who haven't had the opportunity. "When they have gone over there, they aren't as over-awed by the guys on the US team. They aren't over-awed at all. That's what the NBA experience does." What the Olympic experience normally does is give athletes the chance to interact with counterparts from other cultures and sports. But not for the US NBA stars, who are staying in a luxurious hotel rather than the village. US basketball officials worry about the distractions of autograph seekers if the stars mingled with others. Longley has rather enjoyed it and said the distraction is only a minor one. "If you're prepared to accomodate people, it's only for a couple of days," he said. "Once athletes start preparing for their events, I don't think it's much of an issue. They will probably stay away but I don't think it's a drama. "It's part of the Olympic experience. I'd prefer to stay in the village. If that's what they feel like they have to do for a gold medal, good on them." Longley, now with the NBA Phoenix Suns, missed the 1996 Olympics after knee surgery and his absence cost the Aussies dearly. Arvydas Sabonis led Lithuania to victory over the Aussies in the bronze-medal game while Longley could only look on helplessly from his seat as a television commentator. "I'm stoked to be here after missing Atlanta," Longley said. "One of the hardest things I've ever had to do - maybe it says I've had an easy life - was watching Lithuania beat Australia for the bronze medal, watching Sabonis beat them single-handed. To go into the locker room after the game, that was hard.
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