Name Pos. Ht. NBA team

Carmelo Anthony F 6-8 Denver Nuggets

Carlos Boozer F 6-9 Utah Jazz

Chris Bosh F/C 6-10 Toronto Raptors

Kobe Bryant G 6-6 L.A. Lakers

Dwight Howard C 6-11 Orlando Magic

LeBron James F 6-8 Cleveland Cavaliers

Jason Kidd G 6-4 Dallas Mavericks

Chris Paul G 6-0 New Orleans Hornets

Tayshaun Prince F 6-9 Detroit Pistons

Michael Redd G 6-6 Milwaukee Bucks

Dwyane Wade G 6-4 Miami Heat

Deron Williams G 6-3 Utah Jazz

Head coach: Mike Krzyzewski

WHAT DOES TEAM USA NEED TO DO TO WIN?

NBA.com's John Schuhmann offers up three keys to a U.S. team victory in the competitive men's basketball tournament in Beijing:

1 DEFENSE, DEFENSE, DEFENSE

It's good to know that the U.S. players are stressing it on Day 1 of this week's camp, because they need to be focused on the defensive end of the floor from start to finish. Specifically, they need to defend the pick-and-roll that Greece used to kill them in Japan two years ago. All five defenders need to be on the same page, working together ... to take away open lanes to the basket and open jumpers.

2 MAKE PERIMETER SHOTS

In the aforementioned loss to Greece, Team USA took 28 of its 66 shots (42 percent) from beyond the arc. And made just nine of them. There's a reason Michael Redd is on the 2008 team, and it's to make jumpers. LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul can all beat their men off the dribble, but when the help comes, the other Americans on the floor need to stick the open jumper.

3 KNOW YOUR OPPONENT

There's the idea out there that Team USA didn't know Greece well enough before their semifinal matchup in 2006. If that's true, you know that Mike Krzyzewski won't let that happen again. Thoroughly scouting upcoming opponents seemed to become a priority last year at the FIBA Americas championship, and it will continue to be this year in Beijing. Everyone knows Theo Papaloukas' name now.

OTHER NBA PLAYERS IN THE OLYMPICS

Argentina

Manu Ginobili (San Antonio)

Andres Nocioni (Chicago)

Fabricio Oberto (San Antonio)

Luis Scola (Houston)

China

Yao Ming (Houston)

Yi Jianlian (New Jersey)

Australia

Andrew Bogut (Milwaukee)

Germany

Chris Kaman (L.A. Clippers)

Dirk Nowitzki (Dallas)

Lithuania

Linas Kleiza (Denver)

Darius Songaila (Washington)

Spain

Jose Calderon (Toronto)

Rudy Fernandez (Portland)

Marc Gasol (Memphis)

Pau Gasol (L.A. Lakers)

Russia

Andrei Kirilenko (Utah)

THE FORMAT

The tournament starts with a round-robin preliminary round, with each team playing the other five teams in its group once, and then morphs into a single-elimination event afterward.

THE SCHEDULE

Preliminary round: Sunday-Aug. 18

Quarterfinals: Aug. 20

Semifinals: Aug. 22

Gold and bronze medal games: Aug. 24

THE GROUPS

Group A

Argentina

Australia

Croatia

Iran

Lithuania

Russia

Group B

Angola

China

Germany

Greece

Spain

U.S.

U.S. TEAM'S 2004 RESULTS

Preliminary round (3-2)

Team USA lost 92-73 to Puerto Rico in the first game of the tournament in Athens. It was the United States' worst loss in international competition. After two victories, Team USA lost to Lithuania and then beat Angola to advance to medal play as the lowest seed.

Quarterfinals

Team USA 102, Spain 94

Semifinals

Argentina 89, Team USA 81

Bronze medal game

Team USA 104, Lithuania 96

NOTES

• The three losses were the first Team USA losses since NBA players were allowed to compete in the Olympics in 1992.

• Team USA also won only a bronze medal in the 2006 World Championships.

• The U.S. team is 44-0 with Jason Kidd on the roster, including an 8-0 sweep at the Sydney Olympics.

• Five players have Olympic experience: Jason Kidd in 2000; Carmelo Anthony, Carlos Boozer, LeBron James and Dwayne Wade in 2004.