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How Good Was the “Dream Team” at the 1992 Olympics?

The United States men's basketball "Dream Team" at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona was a nightmare for the rest of the world's best hoops stars. Not only did the all-star lineup win every game they played en route to the Olympic gold medal, but they did so in such a dominant fashion that it was as if the other teams were playing a different sport altogether.

The Dream Team was stacked: Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson ... the list goes on and on, so their victory really came as no surprise. Shooting nearly 60 percent from the field, the Americans averaged 117.3 points per game, or nearly 44 points more than their opponents, on average.

En route to the gold, the USA men's basketball team at the '92 Olympics won their games by an average of 44 points.
En route to the gold, the USA men's basketball team at the '92 Olympics won their games by an average of 44 points.

The dominance was so complete that the largest deficit the U.S. team faced was 4 points, against Spain (though they ultimately won that game 122-81). Individual accomplishments included Patrick Ewing's 15 blocks, Charles Barkley's record 30 points in one game, Jordan's single-game record of 12 assists and 8 steals, and coach Chuck Daly's use of no timeouts throughout the tournament. After the Olympics, the gang joined the 1960 squad as the only Olympic teams to be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

U.S. men's basketball stunners at the Olympics:

  • The United States men's basketball team has won gold at the Olympics a record 15 times, including an unbeaten streak from 1936 to 1968.

  • Duke University legend Mike Krzyzewski is the only coach to lead three teams to Olympics gold medals.

  • The U.S. team has an overall Olympic record of 138 wins and 5 losses.

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    • En route to the gold, the USA men's basketball team at the '92 Olympics won their games by an average of 44 points.
      En route to the gold, the USA men's basketball team at the '92 Olympics won their games by an average of 44 points.