Redeem Team’s 2008 Gold Medal Journey Heads to Hall of Fame Honor
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Springfield, Mass., Sept. 3, 2025 — The 2008 U.S. men’s Olympic basketball squad, forever labeled the “Redeem Team,” will be enshrined this weekend in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, capping a revival that began after successive international disappointments and culminated in gold at the Beijing Games.
The road back to the top
USA Basketball’s stumble started with a bronze medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics, ending a string of Olympic dominance. LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony and Carlos Boozer — all on that roster but sparingly used — left Greece frustrated. In the Netflix documentary “The Redeem Team,” James recalled sitting on the medal stand thinking, “this was a waste of my time.”
The slide deepened at the 2006 FIBA World Championship in Japan. A revamped squad featuring James, Anthony, Wade, Chris Bosh, Chris Paul and Dwight Howard lost to Greece in the semifinals and settled for another bronze. The defeat also snapped a 59-game U.S. international winning streak that had already ended once, in 2002, when the Americans finished sixth at the world championships.
Jerry Colangelo, hired as managing director in 2005, responded by demanding multiyear commitments and expanding the program’s budget with backing from then-NBA commissioner David Stern. He selected Mike Krzyzewski to coach and relocated training to UNLV in Las Vegas.
Tactical shifts and new discipline
Krzyzewski emphasized respect for the international game but initially declared, “I do not play zone.” One year later, during the 2007 FIBA AmeriCup qualifier in Vegas, Team USA opened its first possession in a zone defense, signaling real change. The Americans won the tournament and secured their Olympic berth.
Kobe Bryant, who joined the program that summer, set a tone of relentless preparation. Teammates returning from late-night outings routinely found Bryant in the hotel lobby heading to predawn workouts. LeBron James, fresh from his first NBA Finals appearance, began copying Bryant’s regimen, a routine James later credited for sharpening his leadership.
Beijing breakthrough
During pool play at the 2008 Olympics, Bryant warned teammates he knew Spain’s opening set and promptly barreled through Los Angeles Lakers colleague Pau Gasol on the first possession, underscoring his commitment. In the gold-medal game against Spain, a fourth-quarter Spanish surge cut the U.S. lead to two. Krzyzewski called timeout, but Bryant seized the huddle: “I know I’m ready,” he told the group. He then scored 13 fourth-quarter points, including a pivotal four-point play, and pressed his finger to his lips in an enduring image of American resurgence.
Wade, James and Anthony combined for 69 points in the bronze-medal game win over Argentina at the 2006 worlds, then vowed to return. Two years later, they delivered. The Redeem Team’s victory launched a run of five consecutive Olympic golds — 2008 in Beijing, 2012 in London, 2016 in Rio, 2021 in Tokyo and 2024 in Paris — a streak that remains intact.
Hall of Fame roll call
The Hall will induct Wade, James, Anthony and Boozer this weekend for their roles on the Redeem Team. James and Paul, both still active past age 40, will become the first active NBA players ever inducted. Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony are also being honored for their individual careers, joining Bryant, Jason Kidd, Wade and Bosh as fellow 2008 alumni already in the Hall.
Krzyzewski, Colangelo and assistant coach Jim Boeheim were enshrined earlier. Colangelo called the 2008 gold “a moment of total completion,” noting that the program’s long-range plan “was perfectly executed.”
Seventeen years after Beijing, Team USA officials trace today’s sustained success to the culture, tactical flexibility and player commitment forged during the arduous climb from Athens bronze to Beijing gold.
Source: ESPN.com
