Do yourself a favor and watch the U.S.A. Basketball team in the Olympics. I just saw them rout China, and was impressed.

Yes, there was the assortment of spectacular dunks and amazing no-look passes, but the U.S. players didn’t come off as showboaters. It’s just how they play – frenetic and fast-paced. The Redeem Team, as they’ve been dubbed (because of recent failures by U.S.A. Basketball in international competition), shows good character and consummate teamwork.

They’re entertaining because they play fastbreak basketball, keying their offense off smothering defense (steals leading to highlight dunks). (Anyone under the preposterous notion that NBA players don’t play D should watch these guys.) It’s really refreshing to witness hoops being played by magicians in a wide-open style. 

This article appears in Aug 6-12, 2008.

Eric Snider is the dean of Bay area music critics. He started in the early 1980s as one of the founding members of Music magazine, a free bi-monthly. He was the pop music critic for the then-St. Petersburg...