Maybe there’s an obvious answer, but it was something I was curious about.
Also, what other dominant program might I be missing?
Are we counting the 1980 Lake Placid squad as part of the 70’s CCCP team?
UConn’s women’s basketball from about the mid-90’s through the 2010’s?
I don’t think UConn’s women’s team really meets the criteria of what Barry is asking. The Dream Team and CCCP hockey were arguably the greatest teams ever assembled at any level. UConn may have dominated an era of womens’ BB, but are you saying they could have won an Olympic Gold, including beating the team that represented the USA? Would they have also won the WNBA title?
You pose a interesting question, of which I’m woefully unqualified to answer, let alone speculate.
Not to hijack, but I find it more interesting to look at HS coaches who consistently produce champions; because, they take whoever they get, no recruiting superstars (theoretically).
Canadian Womens Hockey 2002-2014 if we’re talking about the Olympics.
1950’s NY Yankees if you include pro teams.
Maybe there’s an obvious answer, but it was something I was curious about.
Also, what other dominant program might I be missing?
The '92 Dream Team.
The Soviet team was beatable (see Lake Placid) at times. They lost the Worlds three times in the 70s. Lost the Summit Series with Canada in '72. They were extremely dominant but could be beat.
The '92 Dream Team was not beatable in 1992 under any circumstance.
The Soviet team was beatable (see Lake Placid) at times. They lost the Worlds three times in the 70s. Lost the Summit Series with Canada in '72. They were extremely dominant but could be beat.
They were afraid to play the Flyers
Maybe there’s an obvious answer, but it was something I was curious about.
Also, what other dominant program might I be missing?
It would be interesting if this was framed against the level of competition for both of these teams and the length of dominance.
CCCP hockey team.
The '92 Dream Team.
The Soviet team was beatable (see Lake Placid) at times. They lost the Worlds three times in the 70s. Lost the Summit Series with Canada in '72. They were extremely dominant but could be beat.
The '92 Dream Team was not beatable in 1992 under any circumstance.
I think you’re right, but just to play devil’s advocate… the sample size for the Dream Team was pretty small. If they played more than that single Olympic tournament, it’s very possible that they would have been upset from time to time be inferior teams.
The '92 Dream Team.
The Soviet team was beatable (see Lake Placid) at times. They lost the Worlds three times in the 70s. Lost the Summit Series with Canada in '72. They were extremely dominant but could be beat.
The '92 Dream Team was not beatable in 1992 under any circumstance.
I think you’re right, but just to play devil’s advocate… the sample size for the Dream Team was pretty small. If they played more than that single Olympic tournament, it’s very possible that they would have been upset from time to time be inferior teams.
There’s no Devil’s Advocate here. The USA was way ahead of the rest of the world in basketball in 1992 and lightyears ahead if we’re talking the Dream Team.
They could’ve played every country in the world 10x each and they would have won every game by a large margin.
Yeah, I do think you’re right. I don’t know enough hockey to know where the CCCP players stacked up, but I think it’s safe to say that they weren’t BETTER than the top NHL players. It’s hard to say for sure since they weren’t playing against NHL players beyond some exhibition games. The Dream Team wasn’t just an All-Star team… it was a literal who’s who of the greatest basketball players ever. If you listed the greatest players ever, at least half of them were on that team.
The amazing thing with basketball is how quickly the world caught up to the USA or sort of caught up to the USA. See 2004 Olympics for reference. Additionally and more recently, the last six NBA MVP awards went to players who are not American. The top four players in this year’s MVP voting were from Serbia, Canada, Slovenia, and Greece.
On ice? the CCCP team.
I think most of the olympic hockey teams of this era were not the best players in the world, but REALLY great players that were paid via corporations in Russia. These guys were studs, but I think there was still the NHL that had the best players - but these guys couldnt play.
The dream team had a prime jordan, pippen, robinson, barkley, ewing, malone, stockton + a washed up bird and johnson.
The dream team was somewhat weak at the SF position.
Maybe there’s an obvious answer, but it was something I was curious about.
Also, what other dominant program might I be missing?
It would be interesting if this was framed against the level of competition for both of these teams and the length of dominance.
CCCP hockey team.
Yeah I’d have to agree-Red Army hockey FTW. This thread has been very interesting to me because I didn’t know the history of the Red Army team playing NHL teams. Between 1975 and 1991, the Red Army team went 26-8-2 against the NHL. That’s pretty freaking impressive.
Alexander Karelin. Took one incredible upset for him to lose.
Karelin dominated world Greco-Roman super-heavyweight wrestling from the late 1980s, and by the beginning of 2000 he had not lost a single match in international competition—a remarkable achievement. He won a series of world championships (1989–91, 1993–95, and 1997–99), as well as gold medals at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, and the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. At the 2000 Games in Sydney, Karelin’s 13-year unbeaten streak ended after he was upset in the final round by American wrestler Rulon Gardner. With his fourth Olympic medal a silver, Karelin retired from the sport.
Karelin won gold medals at the 1988, 1992, and 1996 Olympic Games under a different flag each time (Soviet Union, Unified Team, and Russia respectively), and a silver medal at the 2000 Olympic Games. His wrestling record at the senior level is 887 wins and two losses, both controversial and both by a single point. Prior to his defeat to American Rulon Gardner at the 2000 Olympics finals, a point had not been scored against him in competition the previous six years. He went undefeated in the world championships, having never lost a match.
The amazing thing with basketball is how quickly the world caught up to the USA or sort of caught up to the USA. See 2004 Olympics for reference. Additionally and more recently, the last six NBA MVP awards went to players who are not American. The top four players in this year’s MVP voting were from Serbia, Canada, Slovenia, and Greece.
Cameroon had a injury-year and didn’t play enough games
The dream team had a prime jordan, pippen, robinson, barkley, ewing, malone, stockton + a washed up bird and johnson.
The dream team was somewhat weak at the SF position.
Because MJ chose the team LOL
The dream team had a prime jordan, pippen, robinson, barkley, ewing, malone, stockton + a washed up bird and johnson.
The dream team was somewhat weak at the SF position.
Because MJ chose the team LOL
Yeah, this guy is still pissed.
