On October 1, 2000, the US men’s basketball team defeated France 85-75 to win the gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. This marked USA men’s basketball’s 12th gold medal in the past 14 Olympics. While all-time greats such as Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, Shaq, Allen Iverson, Karl Malone, and Reggie Miller, among others, chose not to play, the US team still put together a team talented enough to win the gold medal, proving how deep with talent the NBA and American basketball was at the time. The US team was instead led by legends like Gary Payton, Kevin Garnett, Alonzo Mourning, Ray Allen, and Vince Carter, among others.
Today in Sports History: October 1
