Head coach | Mike Krzyzewski |
---|---|
2008 Summer Olympics | |
Scoring leader | Dwyane Wade 16.0 |
Rebounding leader | Chris Bosh 6.9 |
Assists leader | Chris Paul 4.0 |
The men's national basketball team of the United States won the gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. They qualified for the Olympics by winning the 2007 FIBA Americas Championship held in Las Vegas, Nevada. The team was nicknamed the "Redeem Team", a play on the "Dream Team" name for the 1992 U.S. Olympic team, and a reference to the fact that the United States came away with disappointing bronze medals during the 2004 Summer Olympics and the 2006 FIBA World Championship. Former Phoenix Suns chairman and CEO Jerry Colangelo was named managing director of the national team program by the USA Basketball Executive Committee in 2005.[1] Kobe Bryant was named the team captain and Mike Krzyzewski was named the head coach of the 2008 team.[2] An ESPN program, Road to Redemption, followed the team's preparations. Additionally, a Netflix produced documentary titled The Redeem Team was released in 2022.[3]
The United States defeated Spain 118–107 in the final to win the gold. Dwyane Wade was the leading scorer for team USA averaging 16 points per game.[4]